A Nindroid's Tears: Forgotten 4
by NewtandZaneFanGirl
Summary: It's the only chance for Zane. Either he dies or Jason dies. One outcome will save the ninja and their families, while the other will bring pain, death, and destruction. If Jason does pass, then the murders of Kai and Nya's parents will remain unsolved. Last in the series. Rated T for violence, murder, and trauma.
1. Chapter 1: A Long Awaited Death

Chapter 1

A Long Awaited Death

**A/N: WARNING! Please read the notes if you are seeing this for the first time (by the way, the emphasis is only for catching your attention, not for negativity).**

**If anyone has not read the other stories in this series I must warn you: this contains ****_major _****spoilers, in case you don't want to know the outcome yet as this is the finale. This is from Zane's perspective. **

**Also, this contains loads trauma and bloody scenes, so be prepared in advance. I have Pixal in here for the romance and seriousness break.**

**For those of you that have waited for this: thank you for your patience and support! You all make it possible! :)**

**Without further ado:**

I can hear my heart pounding in my ears and my cheeks flush in anticipation. This is it. This is the moment when he pays for what he did to my family and me. This is the dark morning that determines whether I live or die; whether my family will be safe or not; whether he will get what he deserves now or later after he dies.

I hold my breath as Jason curses fiercely, stomping on something that produces a cracking sound. "Now I can't even strangle him with the floating device or talk in his mind," he rants.

_So is that how you did it? Of course he'll cheat. I almost thought he could use the force like Lloyd. Jason, I wasn't going to sneak upon you, but if you insist on keeping from using the rules, I have no other alternatives. Die, now._

I slip behind him, my hands trembling as I realize this could be my only chance for everyone's survival. Under other circumstances, I would never come and attack someone like this, but after what he did I don't care at all.

"Where did that coward go?" Jason pulls at his jet-black hair, now all bloody, in frustration.

I pick up the stone from the floor-sticky from his blood-as quietly as possible and make my way to him, raising my weapon over his head. I swing my hand down, expecting to hear the crack of his skull, but instead he whirls around and grabs my arm before the blow can land.

"Ah, so there you are, you little sneaky ninja!" Jason laughs, his red eyes staring into my blue ones with bitter hatred.

I return it, equally, if not more bitter. _What are you waiting for? Do it now! _I try to move, but he has a vice grip on me, though his hand just doesn't feel human.

I so a sweep and knock him to one knee, yet his hand remains on my arm. Sharp razors now protrude from his arm and I reach for the stone from my other hand; then slam it into the razors. They slice right through the rock.

The good thing is that Jason lets go of me and I back away, sliding my hand underneath one of the beds, though it's too dark to tell which one. I feel something cold and sharp nick my hand and draw it out. It's a Chinese chain whip, probably from under Kai's bed.

I wrap it around my left hand a few times, making sure I have a tight grip, before I look up to see razors flying at my head. I duck as the first one comes, and block the next to with the chain; then swing the whip at Jason. He leaps to my right, charging me with daggers coming from his left arm.

_Is guess he must be at least part robot as well_, I muse.

I grab the whip with my right hand in front and swing it toward him as he thrusts his armored arm and weapons at me all at once. The chain blocks them.

I throw a kick that lands on his kneecap as he slams an elbow in my jaw and we both back away.

I come within his striking range and throw a punch, aimed directly for his head, but he dodges; then throws his own strike sideways. I block it with the whip, the dagger narrowly missing my jugular, though I can see it grazing my shoulder. I can't feel it.

I leap up, wrapping my legs around his waist, causing us both to topple over, and I knock into the closet door, where Pixal and Lloyd are waiting for me, wondering if I'm okay. The others have been drugged, so if I really do die, they won't even know until they wake up.

I roll around facing him and wrapping the chain whip around his throat, squeezing as tightly as I can. He grabs something that he uses to strike my head. I squeeze ever tighter till he is scarlet and drops the object. It produces a dull thud. Now is the time for him to pay. "Die, die, die, you monster! You murderer!" I scream as my vision starts to blur.

_What am I thinking? I can't do this. I'm becoming the monster. I'm becoming the murderer._

**Time Lapse**

_"__Zane, please don't kill my brother," a brunette in a Jamanukai village uniform pleads._

_"__Jane, but I thought you were dead," I gape stare her with moist eyes._

I open my eyes to blinding light. "Guys, Zane's awake!" I hear Lloyd's voice close by my ear and my vision clears.


	2. Chapter 2: A Hospital Stay

Chapter 2

A Hospital Stay

**A/N: Thank you NinjaMelissa, FireIce, RapidstarJ, LuckyBrick123 and zanejulien for your reviews! :) Sorry about the first chapter being so abrupt.**

"W-where am-" I pause as I see white walls and floors and hear the all-too-familiar beeps of the heart rate monitor. An IV needle is in my arm and I am dressed in a pastel-shaded, hospital gown, yet everything looks…split in half. Hospital…is that where I am? "What happened?" I venture to ask my family that has crowded anxiously around me, all silent.

More silence. "Well?"

"Your cerebellum was damaged," Jay tells me.

I quirk a brow, but find it too painful in the back of my head as I move to sit up and ask, "What does that mean?"

"The cerebellum controls your motor skills, cognitive functions, and posture, as well as other things," Marcy informs me.

"How could you not know about that? You're an adult," Cole says.

"Uh, are you forgetting not too long ago he was a robot?" Kai looks at him and then back at me. "You feeling alright?"

"Could be better. How long have I been out?"

"Two days," Melissa responds, putting a hand on her large stomach. She's almost nine months pregnant, so I hope her being drugged didn't affect the twins.

"How are the little ones?" I inquire.

"Wonderful, thank you," she smiles, "They should be out pretty soon."

"What happened to Jason?" I ask, suddenly feeling anxious. I'm not dead, so that is good, but is he?

"Um…" Jay shifts his weight around uncomfortably as he and everyone sits in his seat by my bed. "Well…he…"

"Yeah?" I say, growing rather impatient at his slow unraveling of the answer.

"He's…dead, Zane. You killed him," Lloyd responds instead.

My gut wrenches. I imagined that he would die and I would be happy, be…free, but I don't feel that way. I feel sick. _You killed someone. _A voice speaks to me in my head, perhaps my conscience arguing with me. I name my guilty conscience, G, and my own will, W.

_W: He deserved it._

_G: But you killed him._

_W: He wasn't ever a human! He hurt my family!_

_G: But you did kill him._

_W: It was self-defense._

_G: You snuck up on him._

_W: It was my family and me who would die, or him._

_G: But you did kill him. You've always wanted to and you strangled him._

_W: Go away! Leave me alone!_

_G: No. You killed a human. You're a murderer._

_W: No I'm not!_

_G: Yes you are._

_W: No I'm not!_

_G: Yes you are._

"No, no, no, no, no!" I scream aloud as G keeps telling me I murdered him.

"Zane, calm down," Pixal's comforting hand touches my shoulder.

"But I didn't murder him," I insist, and lean against her, letting the tears flow as I hear the dreadful word echo in my head.

_Murderer._

"No, no, no, no," I moan clutching the sides of the bed in both physical and emotional pain.

Pixal gingerly wraps both arms around me and pats my back, saying in a soothing voice, "It's okay. You're okay; we're okay. He deserved it. It's all over." I embrace her, gritting my teeth from the pain from my gunshot wound.

I could sense the others leaving and I fell asleep in her arms. When I woke up, I had asked her to take me to the men's showering room, which also has a bathroom. She wheeled me in and left to get a male nurse to wait for me in case I needed help.

I wait here now, alone, not supposed to stand up, but I don't care. I grab both sides of the wheelchair, pushing myself up slowly. Once I'm up, I feel a bit wobbly and unsteady, though not as bad as I thought. I carefully slide a bare foot forward; then my next one, shuffling at first, and I now lift a foot off the ground, holding my breath.

I set it down as cautiously as possible, yet as my foot meets the cold tile, my ankle twists, and I lose my balance. I instantly lurch forward, grasping something cold as well, just stopping my fall. I get up and open the glass door as the door behind me creaks open.

I glance behind me as a six foot three inch male nurse enters, carrying two white towels with the hospital emblem on them. One is large and one is small.

"Do you need help?" he asks, as he hangs the towels over the side of the shower door.

"No, I'm fine, thank you," I respond.

"Are you sure? You don't look too good."

"I'm fine," Insist, not quite comfortable around this man. Besides his height, his arms are as thick as tree trunks, and his hazel eyes… There's something rather…unusual about them, like they're mad, or he's not all there.

I look down at his thick hands and see a small, cylindrical container filled with red liquid and I ask, "What's that red liquid for?"

"It's a shot that will make you feel better, permanently," he smiles, showing a gap between his two front teeth.

He pushes me onto the cold floor with immense force, pinning me down by my arms. "Let go of me!" I demand, writhing under his heavy body. If only I was well, I could fight him better, but I can't get away.

He shoves his tree-like elbow into my throat, making me choke and he takes out a syringe filled with red liquid out of his nurse pocket, saying, "You talk too much, kid." He jabs the needle into my tongue, sending a sharp pain in it, and then it goes numb.

I try to scream, but I can't feel my tongue at all and I do one of the only things I can. I slam my bandaged skull into his, making him let go of me. I slip from under him, but as I crawl away, he grabs my leg and jabs something into it. I kick his face.

"Zane, are you in there?" Kai's voice comes from behind the door.


	3. Chapter 3: A Blur

Chapter 3

A Blur

**A/N: Thank you zanejulien, NinjaMelissa, FireIce, and RapidstarJ for your awesome ****reviews! The next chapter will have more than one P.O.V. but after two ninja explain things, it will go back to Zane's.**

I grimace as he drags me back to him, but I'm not in pain. I can't feel my leg anymore or my tongue, and I can't call for help. Kai knocks on the door, calling me again, "Zane, you in there?"

_Make noise. Make noise so he can hear you! _I grab the handle of the wheelchair, trying to topple it over, and the man pries my hand off it; then begins bending my fingers backward. Pain shoots up it and I kick him again.

He screams, letting me go and I shove the wheelchair over. It lands on me and partially on the tile with a crash as something wet touches my head. The stranger shoves the chair away, rolling me onto my back and grabs my chin forcefully.

The doorknob is being turned, but it's locked. Footsteps. "Anyone in there?" Kai calls, now banging on the door. The man shoves the vial against my lips, pouring nasty liquid on me, and I struggle. I cannot get away and he pries my mouth open, forcing the stuff down.

I suddenly am completely numb, except for a slight tingle on my back from the wound. I watch him as he draws out another syringe, filled with green liquid and he whispers, "Have a good sleep, ninja."

The door bursts open and I can faintly make out Kai's form hitting the attempted murderer's…face I think. I'm feeling a bit drowsy and there's red stuff all over the white tile, a slippery, sticky substance that's on me as well.

"Help! Get the police! There's someone injured here!" Kai calls out, holding the man's thick arms behind his back, and holding something silver. They're both covered in red too.

"Zane, you with me? Don't fall asleep; help's on the way, brother. Just stay with me, please!"

He keeps talking, I think, but the words keep fading in and out. I only hear snatches of it, yet I just…want to sleep. I can feel it coming quite potently, and my head starts swimming, the floor starts rocking back and forth like a ship, tossed on the waves.

"Zane, you there? Zane!"

"Move, sir. We need to get him," a nurse pushes Kai back a bit and two other people dressed in white roll a silver and white thing beside me.

I'm now on it, being moved through an eternity of white, white, white. It's all I see as I lie here, probably being brought to the emergency room by nurses. I can make out me now at a door, someone opening it, and me being transported inside another white room.

Other blurred figures are on more white and silver structures, and a figure comes up to me, holding something cylindrical with a thin, also silver object attached to it. The person jabs it into my arm, injecting it I suppose.

"Zane, can you hear me?" a distant voice calls my name.

"Zane! What happened to him?" a purple figure exclaims as two white figures shove green, purple, red, blue, and black shapes away from me.

I think they're my…family. _Pixal, is that you? Help me, someone. _I feel so trapped, unable to move or see correctly at all. Everything after that is a distant passing right now.

"Hey, gee man. Trouble bounds to happen around you, you know that?" Lloyd frowns, leaning back in his metal chair. I'm in the hospital room again, with everyone gathered around me, looking quite concerned, as well as alarmed.

"Did I…black out again?" I ask. I can feel everything and can speak now.

"No, don't you remember?" Kai says, his eyes widening a bit with an anxious edge to his voice.

"No, I know I saw this red stuff all over the floor, all over you, all over him, and all over me. All over…_him_," I muse, trying to clear my cloudy brain.

"Think. I dropped you off at the men's room. What happened after that?" Pixal asks.

I went to the men's room…I remember! "Oh, yes, I do. I tried to get up out of the wheelchair and I…fell. I caught something and pulled myself up…then this man came in the room…holding two white towels. He set them down on the shower door and took out a syringe. The rest is all a blur. I think he attacked me."

"Well, we need a better eyewitness," a man I hadn't noticed before closes his notebook and says, "Thank you for your cooperation."

He leaves the room and I ask, "Who was that?"

"Detective Walter." Jay answers.

"Kai, there's something I never asked you that I've always wanted to: what happened when you were in the hospital yourself and went missing?" I inquire out of a sudden desire to know.

"Yeah, you never said anything about that, dear," Melissa slips an arm around her husband.

Kai shifts in his seat uncomfortably.

**Kai**

Zane just asked me about something not too pleasant to recollect.

"Yeah, you never said anything about that, dear," my beautiful wife slips an arm around me.

I shift around in my chair, kind of uncomfortable that everyone here is now staring at me. _Nice way to get attention, really! _I think sarcastically, though not blaming Zane at all, just feeling frustrated is all. Well, not exactly. I'm actually sick at the thought of what happened, the way I…

"Kai, you okay?" Melissa asks.

"Uh…yeah, yeah. I'm fine," I respond and draw in a deep and nervous breath before saying, "Okay, I might as well tell you guys. You'd find out eventually anyway, so no more hiding from it."

**Flashback**

I open my eyes, finding myself slumped over a man's back, with heavy rain just pouring and pouring on me. I try to hold in a cough, but it comes out violently, blood dripping out from my mouth. The chill is in my bones soaking my entire weak body.

"Don't move, or you're dead." Whoever this guy is better back off, because after what happened to my brother, I'm not about to let this happen either. Zane may be defensive, but I'm offensive. I don't know if that's good or bad.

"Like I won't!" I retort, grabbing his short hair and slamming my head up into his.


	4. Chapter 4: The Inevitable Answers

Chapter 4

The Inevitable Answers

**A/N: Thank you NinjaMelissa, Guardian Sorceress Alanshee, FireIce, and RapidstarJ for your reviews! This has more P.O.V. switches but after this I'm alternating between Zane and No P.O.V.**

He drops me on the hard, wet asphalt and I hear something in my back crack, though I barely feel it. I splash in the puddle as I push myself up on both knees, but this man grabs my throat, squeezing tightly and taking the breath out of my body. I strive to wrench him off and kick him.

He releases me and I get up, sending a blow to his head; then I grab his shoulders, slamming him into a brick wall. I punch his head three more times, feeling his bones crack beneath my fist before elbowing his gut.

By now my attacker is bleeding from his broad nose and his jeering mouth and I grab his shirt, pulling him close. "What do you want with Zane and me?"

"O-okay. I'll tell you, man. Just let me go! It hurts!" he yelps.

I let go of him and back away, my bare feet really cold from stepping in the puddles, and say in a suppressed tone, "Now tell me why and how much you know."

"Alright man, just give me a minute."

"Why…" I cough up more blood, "why…should…I?"

"Cause you broke my dang nose, man!" he holds a hand to it with a contorted face.

"Don't you pull that on me!" I shout and I punch him again.

He doubles over, crying out in pain and I cough violently, just holding my hand to my mouth with blood spurting out. I know I need an antidote for the poison and soon, or else I'm not going to make it.

I want to see my brothers and wife longer, as well as to see my children born and watch them grow up. I want to teach them how to defend themselves and to teach them morals. "I need to know the antidote," I say after the coughing has subsided.

"You need to…" the man wheezes and speaks low enough I can't hear him.

"What?" I ask, coming closer to him.

He's too quiet and I lean down by his ear. "That stuff is only temporary, man. Worry about your bros first." Before I can react, my head is in his thick hands and I'm being thrown against the wall as my hair is gripped. He wraps an arm around my throat and I grab him, twisting toward his elbow, slipping out of it, but I feel this horrible tear in my head.

I whirl around and meet a boot in my face, slamming my body back into the brick wall. I shut my eyes as I receive a blow to my ribcage, knocking the wind out of me. I open my eyes and see the man jeering, holding a piece of my flesh and hair in his hand and throw it on the sidewalk.

I try to gather up my remaining strength and throw a kick, but he catches my leg and shoves me to the ground. "You going to pay for that, man!" he shouts and stomps on my hand.

I hold in any sounds that strive to come out of me, though the pain is almost unbearable. I can't get up. Everything turns black.

**End of Flashback**

I just finished telling everyone and they all look pretty shocked. I don't blame them. After all I did pound a guy's face in, and he did the same to me.

**Zane**

_Oh my Overlord. Did he just beat a man's face in and not say anything? He looks rather guilty, yet somehow indignant at the same moment. It must have hurt his pride. _"I'm sorry," I apologize, "I shouldn't have asked, but I need to know, is this the same man that attacked me?"

Kai nods without a word. "Has anyone else seen him?" I ask.

"Yeah, I have." Lloyd responds.

"When and where?" I inquire.

**Lloyd**

_Oh, gee. Why didn't I even mention it? Too bad for you, Lloyd Garmadon, you need to tell them because we're all still in danger._

"Yes, I have," I respond hesitantly.

"When and where?" Zane asks.

"When I was about to be kidnapped, over that phone conversation," I tell him.

"Let's replay that recording," Cole says.

"I have the phone," Jay pulls it out and plays it.

After a bit of tapping the screen, we hear Zane's anxious voice, "Where are you?"

"I'm in between the buildings of the…ah!" I scream and cough as we hear blunt sounds…of me being beaten.

The guy's dreadfully deep voice comes over the phone. "We will contact you again. If you call the police, we will kill the green ninja."

"No!" I wail and the recording ends.

"Yeah, that's him alright. They call him Harry," I say to everyone.

"Interesting." Kai muses, "When I was in the cave, I heard the man saying 'I don't like what he did to Harry'. Maybe this is the same guy."

**Zane**

"What do these incidents have in common?" I ask, already aware of the answers.

"It's all done by the same person and he always does the dirty work. He's working for someone and I think I know the relationship between him and Jason.


	5. Chapter 5: A Connection of Hits

Chapter 5

A Connection of Hits

**Thank you Dj6667013, NinjaMelissa, zanejulien, and FireIce for your awesome reviews!**

"Well, tell us," Jay urges me after a long, awkward silence.

"Kai and Lloyd weren't there to witness it, but Jay and Cole did. Remember when we apprehended a man a few years ago for murdering a two-year-old in a parking lot?"

"Um…I think so," Jay says.

"Wait, when was this?" Lloyd asks.

"Right after us three became ninja," I respond.

"Yeah, what about him?" Cole inquires.

"Look up Harry Wentworth," I tell Jay.

The lightning ninja presses on the phone screen a few times before showing me a jail photo of him and an article below says:

_Harry Wentworth was arrested for taking a two-year-old little girl, Cass Millers, and strangling her to death. He managed to evade being detected by authorities for five months until three civilians apprehended him at convenience store in Jamanukai village. One of the three people, calling himself Cole Black said, "If I had been there, Cass would have been safe."_

_The one calling himself Jay Walker said, "It's a tragedy at how people will actually hurt little children."_

_We asked the one called Zane to say something and his response was, "My deepest condolences for the Millers. The pain of losing a loved one is great, but the pain of not remembering them is greater."_

_Zane told us he doesn't remember his family, thus unable to give a surname._

The article continues, but I look away and let Jay show the others. "You actually said that?" Kai asks in disbelief. I nod.

"Gee, Wentworth and Jason does not go together," Jay adds.

"So, what does that have to do with Jason?" Pixal inquires.

"Look up 'Wentworth Brothers'," I tell Jay and he comes up with a photo of Jason and Harry in jail again for knifing and strangling a teenage girl.

"They're…brothers?" Nya gasps and everyone else merely drops his mouth agape.

**Flashback**

I slip out of my room and limp over to Grandmother's, about to knock when I hear a hot argument.

"Jason!" I hear Jane's usually gentle voice reprimanding her brother angrily, "Why did you kill that woman's cat?"

"Because that dumb animal bit me!" he screams back at her, wrenching the door open and shoving me out of the way. "What are you doing here?"

"I…I was going to…" I begin to explain but he cut me off.

"Stay out of, Zane," he brushes past me, lightly punching my leg wound.

I gasp in pain and hold onto my injury, blood soaking my jeans as Jane exits the room in a huff. She pushes her brown hair out of her face, muttering, "Why did we even adopt that freak?"

"J-Jane…can you help me?" I ask.

"Oh, Zane, why didn't you say anything? You're not supposed to reopen your wound! Come on, let's go and bandage you up."

**End of Flashback**

I tell the others what I remember and they nod their heads in understanding. "We need to investigate this," Kai says.

"Yeah, and we need to be on the alert. I believe the two are or were hit men," I tell them.

It hurts to mention him, after what he did, the murder, the abuse the lie. I subconsciously touch where my arm had a scar, fingering it. After turning human it had disappeared, but the scars in my heart remain as a permanent barrier.

I lie back down on the soft, clean bed, smelling the scent of newly washed sheets filling my nose and shutting my eyes. I want them to leave me, so they don't see me this way. I don't know what to do. "Kai," Melissa's voice sounds quite panicked. "I think the twins want out, babe."

I open my eyes and see Pixal here, sitting next to me, staring at her wide-eyed. Kai starts breathing more heavily than his wife, "What do we do? What do we do?"

"Call the doctor," Nya says, patting Emma's back.

"Kai, please, take me to a birthing center," Melissa pleads.

"What?" Kai exclaims, quite taken aback.

"Remember, we made an appointment?"

"But since we're already here, shouldn't we just-"

"Kai please!" she holds her hands against her stomach and screams.

"Cole, get the car," the fire ninja hands him the key and picks his wife up under her legs and under her back.

Jay opens the door while everyone, excluding Pixal and I, head out. "We'll be back frosty," the lightning ninja tells me and leaves shutting the door behind him.

I hope Melissa is okay; the poor woman seemed to be in lots of pain. I really oughtn't wallow in self-pity. I have my family who love me, that should be enough. Furthermore, I have Pixal, and we both have a strange connection of love somehow.

She runs a soft hand through my blond hair, saying gently, "Zane, I know this has been hard for you. Don't shut your emotions up like that. You're a human now and it's unhealthy to do that."

"Pixal, has everyone been hiding something from me?" I venture to ask after a few moment of blissful silence.

She looks rather hesitant and withdraws her hand, setting it on her lap. "Zane…I don't know how to tell you this," she begins quietly, "It's about Jason… I…the others told me not to say anything, but I'm going to anyway. He's…not dead."

"What?" I gasp in disbelief and surprise. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I wanted to…but the others said he's wanted anyhow, so even if he got away, he would get captured. They don't want you to go after him and get hurt."

"I have to search for him," I say and throw the covers off. She grabs my arm and won't let go, but I wrench away from her. I push myself off the bed as my feet meet the cold tile and fall on my elbows and knees.

"Please, Zane, you're going to end up injured worse. Look at the state you're in!"

"Pixal, I've decided I won't try to kill him, but I must bring him to justice with my own hands," I tell her, grabbing the bedpost and trying to get up.

"Okay, I'll take you to search for him."

**Time Lapse**

I'm in the hover car now, in clothing that's pretty beat up and already bloodstained from the other fights I've had, not to mention the fact that _everything_ shows up on white. Pixal gave me a black jacket to cover it up though and now we're listening to the radio in the parking lot, waiting for news of Jason.

My fiancé insisted on driving and now it's just a matter of waiting. We're listening to a shoe advertisement on the radio until it abruptly changes.

A man's voice comes over the feed. "We interrupt this program to bring you news of the man, Jason Wentworth, wanted for attempted murder heading on North Rd."

"That's our cue," I tell her.


	6. Chapter 6: The Mole

Chapter 6

The Mole

**Thank you NinjaMelissa and FireIce for your reviews! :)**

**Now for some sneaky crime and important answers!**

Once we hit the right street, my lovely fiancé turns to me and asks, "Are you ready for this?"

I nod. She pulls over next to a road meter as I undo my seatbelt and I open my door. "I'll take care of the meter, just be careful and try not to get into any situations. Here," Pixal hands me a .22 Magnum, "You might need this."

I take it and respond, "Thank you. Is this cocked?"

"I usually don't for safety reasons. Do you have a carrying license?"

I nod. "Be careful, Pixal," I say and she gives me a little pop kiss on my cheek.

"I will," she reassures me.

I slip the gun in my belt, concealing it with my jacket, though inevitably there is a slightly visible bulge there. I amble as casually as possible into the street, a place that's not a pretty sight.

It's one of those bad neighborhoods where the residents are in danger of being shot daily. Graffiti permeates nearly every wall and trash lines the entire street. Broken bottles are in a yard, scattered across the lawn of singed grass, probably that way from a careless drunken person or an arsonist. A pale little boy, wearing dirty clothing that looks like it came from a dumpster sees me, staring with soulless, dull eyes. He's holding an empty beer bottle in his emaciated hand.

_I hope he wasn't drinking that. _A group of other little kids, about seven or eight years of age, come behind him, all staring the same way and holding glass bottles of different shapes and sizes. Now it hits me. The yard they're on has a shattered window and shards litter the thirsty grass, meaning one possible thing.

"Who are you?" the boy asks coldly.

"I'm," I pause, believing it's unwise to say I'm a ninja in this crime-infested area, "I'm looking for someone."

"What does he look like?" The child tenses up, squeezing the bottle tightly.

"He's about six feet tall," I put my hand a bit over my head for comparison, "and has short, black hair. He's wanted by the police." The boy's eyes widen and I realize my mistake. "I'm here to get him out of here, so no one is going to be involved," I quickly add.

"I know a girl who saw him. Kelly, come here," he yells over his shoulder. A girl about ten years old comes over, twirling her brown braids and starts when she sees me.

"Jenna, this is where you live?" I nearly drop my mouth open. She's the girl who said she was lost at the gas station. "How do you know Jason?"

"Uh…Zane…" she looks quite frightened and clutches the bottom of her skirt. "I'm sorry! He made me do it!" she blurts out and starts crying. "He said if I didn't spy on you, he was going to kill my family!"

I get on one knee and put my hands on her thin shoulders. "Where is he?"

"I'll show you," she says, wiping her tears with the back of her hand.

I follow her down the entire street, and turn onto another abandoned one with worn down buildings that look like a ghost town. Jenna takes me past quite a few of them, and I nearly trip several times before she stops. We're a few houses away from the end of this street and the girl turns to me. "Don't tell him anything please."

I nod and whisper, "Thank you Jenna." She gives a little smile and takes off while I pull out my .22 Magnum and cock it.

I feel far safer with the weapon, but anything could go wrong at this delicate point. I begin approaching the building cautiously, though inevitably step on shards of glass and splash in puddles.

Last night it had been raining, so everything is even more dismal, including the ashen clouds covering the sky. The cement is cracked and uneven, not exactly helping my coordination from my damaged cerebellum.

My heart is pounding as I inch my way to the concrete building, where a bit of smoke exits the broken window. An orange tinted light emanates from the abandoned place. I draw in a few deep breaths before peering through the window to meet an interesting sight. Jason and Harry are sitting next to a bonfire, eating out of cans with their chilled fingers from the icy breeze. The musty odor is something I have to get used to, as it is everywhere here.

"Why did everything have to be this way?" Harry grumbles. If nothing had gone wrong, we would have been rich. Do you know how much it would cost to sell that map, not to mention the golden weapons?

"We wouldn't need to rob or do the dirty work at all and I want you to remind me, brother, why did we leave Whyplash?"

Jason throws his now empty can on the floor while standing up, sending an echo in the concrete building, and grabs Harrison's drab jacket, pulling him close. "They killed _my_ family! They tried to kill _me, me, me_! I helped them and they betrayed _me_! Why should I listen to them? I was at their disposal, but not anymore."

"Why are we trying to kill Zane and Kai then?"

My heart skips a beat. This is what I need to know. Why are they trying to kill us?

"Because," Jason lets go of Harry and sits down in a huff, "When the other hit man killed Kai's mom, Zane was there. Nya doesn't remember anything, but the other two do."

"Then Lloyd?"

"What?"

"Why are we after Lloyd?"

"He found out too much, but at least when we kidnapped him, we erased that part of his memory. That would have been disastrous."

"What do we do next?"

"Get rid of Zane and Kai, then leave. What else do you think? You want to sit with an officer and eat donuts in jail? Go ahead if you want, bro."

"I mean, what exactly do we do next?" Harry crosses his arms.

"Get Pixal."

_No! No one hurts Pixal! _I nearly burst out with anger, but only find myself losing balance and hit the floor. I didn't even trip.

"What's that?" I hear Jason and Harry shuffling in the building. Thank goodness the gun didn't go off.

_Oh dang._


	7. Chapter 7: The Gun Pursuit

Chapter 7

The Gun Pursuit

**A/N: Thank you NinjaMelissa, LuckBrick123, Zanelover01, FireIce, and RapidstarJ for your reviews!**

**Sorry about this being late! I wrote the entire chapter yesterday and accidently deleted the whole thing so this is a redo, though I did change some of it. :(**

"Who's there?" I hear Jason ask as footsteps draw near.

I feel this suddenly energizing heat flush over my body, rage, an emotion I rarely experience. I get up as a breeze brings a poignant smell to my nostrils, and I clutch the gun tightly enough that it trembles.

I keep my finger against the trigger guard, and support my left hand with my right. I'm glad Pixal gave me this gun as it has thirty rounds per magazine. I hear a crackle as the orange and red tint becomes more evident. I hold my breath, counting the seconds it takes for them to reach here.

_One. _A crackle.

_Two. _Footsteps.

_Three. _A clang.

_Four. _A cock.

_Five. _A whisper.

_Six. _Silence.

No one stirs. The sounds of our breaths are the only things perceived and I can expect a warm greeting, based upon those friendly noises. Why are they not striking? I wait, yet there is no activity on the other side. I think running would be wise, considering that I'm up against two highly skilled hit men that are bound to have weapons as well.

"The police are here! They've got their guns pointed at you! I hear the sirens and see those fluorescent light flashing at the building!" my phone starts ringing and playing the ridiculous tone, selected by Jay and Lloyd.

Footsteps.

I roll my eyes, nettled at the fact that someone would call me now, and scare off my targets. I climb through the window and catch a glimpse of Jason and Harrison exiting through an opening where a door was never installed. I fire, feeling a slight kickback, and the bullet is now imbedded in the wall. I nearly slip on the concrete, but make it unscathed through the doorway and shoot several more times. None of them find their mark.

A stationary target's hard enough, yet a moving one is even harder to hit, especially with how uncoordinated I am right now. I fire again and blood spatters from Jason's leg, but he keeps running, unfazed.

The wet asphalt causes me to spontaneously fall on my stomach, and the gun goes off, right next to my head. My ears are ringing. I had been gaining on them, now I have quite a distance to move though. I get up, holding the gun a little away from myself and see the two scale six feet, chain link fence. I somehow find myself clambering over I as well.

I turn onto the next street. Light blinds me and I shield my eyes as something screeches. I look to see a black mini van in front of me, only a few feet away.

A bald, pale man practically throws the door open, seeming rather fuming, and shoves a nine millimeter in my face, close enough I can make out a blurry tattoo. "Put your gun down," he demands.

I don't want to. I need to get Jason and Harrison before they hurt Pixal. "I have to-"

A loud pop brings my body back a bit and I look down. There's blood on my right side. I wait for him to say something and another man comes out with an HK .416, pointing it at my head. The first gunman asks, "What are you doing?"

"Pursuing two wanted men," I respond, hoping they aren't wanted as well.

"Clear pass."

"What?"

"Go get them. You don't want the cops involved too, do you?"

I shake my head, obviously lying, but dart off, all the way down the street until I see the Pixal by the hover vehicle, waiting anxiously. "What happened to you?" her mouth drops agape.

"Same as last time, I think," I tell her.

"Did you get them?"

"No, but I shot him. We can follow his blood trail though."

"No," she says flatly.

"Why?" I ask, rather surprised.

"You're hurt and we need to return to the hospital before the others return and suspect us. He's shot, so he won't go far."

I sigh indignantly and get in the car, shutting the door not too gently. Pixal starts the vehicle we both strap in our seatbelts then I unzip the jacket. Only now do I feel any sort of pain in my side and Pixal asks, "Do you need help?"

"I don't know. I need to see how bad it is," I say and lift my shirt up, causing more blood to squirt out, but find it only grazed. From point blank, he must not have intended to harm me much.

"We need to stop the car and I'll help you," Pixal tells me.

"Now how do we explain this mess?"


	8. Chapter 8: All Lies: The Secret Inv

Chapter 8

All Lies: The Secret Investigation

**A/N: Thank you Firelce, NinjaMelissa, and Dj6667013 for your reviews! :) Sorry about the slow updating. I've been having a bit of wiring trouble on this one, but I'm back. Disclaimer: I do not own Ninjago, only the plot and OCs.**

"I don't know," I respond as Pixal parks the car on the side of the road, "but we'll have to figure out something."

I gingerly remove my seatbelt, though it inevitably brushes against the laceration, sending hot pain in my side. I gasp, clutching the door handle tightly with my eyes shut.

"Zane, let me help you," Pixal says and I can hear her seatbelt click. A cold hand touches my face, caressing it, and I venture to open my eyes again. "You're going to be okay."

I nod and she lifts my bloody, what-used-to-be-white shirt up, probably assessing the damage further. She touches the gash with a freezing finger, sending more pain, and tugging at the flesh. Blood. I can feel the blood squirting out, though I turn away, gripping the handle like there's no tomorrow. Being human can be really hard at times. If I were a robot again, I could have been repaired already, and not having these long, after affects that are deemed to remain with me for quite some time, unfortunately. I just hope everything will be over soon. At least when Marcy changes me back to my original body, my heart will be healed…permanently.

"I forgot…to ask you…Pixal," I gasp, turning and clutching her wrist to keep her from touching my wound.

"You can ask, but you need to let me clean the laceration," she gently removes my hand and I notice she's holding a white washcloth. I don't bother wondering where she got it and merely brace myself. She meticulously wipes it, sending hot pain in my side.

I tense up and ask, "What happened at the hospital?"

"What do you mean?" Pixal says tentatively.

"When Harrison attacked me."

She holds the cloth against the wound and applies pressure. "Kai stopped him, though he already suffered from a concussion and a broken jaw when he arrived. You were treated and were in Intensive Care for several hours, but thankfully the doctors were able to stop the poison from spreading too far into your bloodstream. You were in a sort of delirium for awhile, yet here you are, in a different situation."

"How could…" I start, but she speaks for me.

"A human withstand such a thing?" Pixal says. "Marcy gave you a resilient body."

I nod and she continues, "We better return before the others suspect us, or else who knows. They may keep guards to protect, as well as lock you up and then I won't be able to help you."

**At the Hospital**

After binding the wound we sped back to the hospital, Pixal receiving a ticket for a rolling-stop on the way. We already went inside and she left me in my room to change. I just need to put the hospital top on and get in the bed before…

"Is Zane inside?" Marcy's voice comes from the other side of the door.

"He's resting right now," Pixal's voice sounds a bit on edge.

I put the long-sleeved shirt on and begin buttoning it up when the door starts to open. In full-fledged panic, I throw my other clothes under the bed and slip into the covers, concealing the mostly open shirt that exposes my chest and wound. I shut my eyes and hear scuffling.

A hand tousles my hair. _Why does everyone do that? _"Zane, how are you doing?" Marcy asks.

I don't respond, hoping they believe I am asleep and will leave quickly. "What's this on the floor?" Sensei Garmadon inquires.

"It looks like blood," Misako says.

_Oh, dang it!_

"It must have been a mistake from the doctors," Pixal suggests.

"How is he doing?" Sensei Wu asks.

"Better than expected, but he's lost a lot of blood so he won't be up and about for several days," Pixal responds. "Do any of you know how Melissa is doing?"

"I got a call a few minutes ago from Kai," Sensei Wu replies. "She just had the twins."

"Wonderful."

"They said they would swing by tomorrow, and were going to visit," Misako requests, "Tell Zane when he wakes up we said hello."

"I'll be sure to," Pixal says. Shuffles. The door opens and shuts.

I open my eyes and see my fiancé beaming as she ambles beside me. She sits down in the chair, taking my cold hands in hers, and rubs them gently. "Are you feeling any better?" she asks.

I nod and she strokes my blond hair, humming softly as sleep takes over me. Tomorrow is going to be quite long, I expect.


	9. Chapter 9: A Turn of Events

Chapter 9

A Turn of Events

**A/N: Thank you Zanelover01, FireIce, NinjaMelissa, and Dj6667013 for your awesome reviews! :D**

**3:30 A.M.**

"Where have you both been?" Kai crosses his arms and stares at me while leaning against the doorframe of the kitchen entrance; then quickly uncrosses them. "What is going on?"

"Kai…" I say, glancing from to Jason and back to him again, uncertain of how to explain the situation.

I shift my weight to my other side, wincing from having lain on the cold tile for far too long. I look at the cabinet in front of me, with several tally marks scratched out and raise a hand, shackled around the wrists by heavy manacles. I put a finger against the rotting wood and slowly count how many days it's been since I was taken. 21.

Kai rushes up to me and lifts the chains that are attached to the floor, and pulls at them. His efforts are futile. I cock my head to see that Pixal is still unconscious only a few feet across from me and Jason is as well, at the far end of the dismal room. "Don't bother," I tell him. "W-we…need…a k-k-key," I say, my voice losing control.

"Key? Where?" Kai asks.

"C-c-cabinet," I point to the one high above me, though the chains prevent me from moving my hand up too much. "F-f-f-fast. He's…c-com-ming…back."

Kai opens it with ease and takes out a brass key; then goes to unlock mine when I hold up a hand. "P-Pixal."

"Okay, I'll be right back." The fire ninja unlocks her chains as her eyes shoot open, and she grabs onto his leg with a weak scream. "Pixal, it's me, Kai."

"K-Kai…g-ge-get Zane," she pleads.

"I've got both of you," he responds, helping her sit and lean against the cabinet behind her. He then unlocks my shackles and drags me to a sitting position as well.

I flinch, feeling every aching muscle and hot sting in my worn out body before mumbling, "J-Jas-Jason."

"Why should we save him? Leave him," Kai says, "Melissa already told me what he did to you."

I shudder at the reminder of the abuse of those three weeks when I was thirteen. Three weeks passed…as well. "N-no!" I yell, clutching my brother's arm as he attempts to pick me up off the floor.

"What's the matter? Are you hurt?" he asks, gently setting me back down.

"G-get…Jason. Has…a-a-a-ans-swers…or he'll…be k-kill-killed."

"What?"

A loud bang and a creak draw our attention to the door that is ajar and the one who opened it.

THREE WEEKS AGO:

"Look at them, Zane!" Pixal squeals with delight as Melissa hands us each a twin.

I have Jill and Pixal has Jack. The little girl's hands are still balled up in little fists, and her pink face flushes a bright red as she coos at me. I smile, holding my arm under her delicate neck, and play with her tiny fingers. "Congratulations," I say to Melissa and Kai, who are both beaming.

"Thank you," they both respond simultaneously and hold each other's hands. I kiss Jill's soft forehead and gingerly give her back to Melissa and Pixal does likewise.

My phone rings and I pull it out of my jeans pocket, before seeing it's an unknown caller. Usually I don't pick up, but after what happened last time I do answer it. "Hello?"

"Is this Zane Julien?" a panicky male voice asks.

"Yes. Who is this?" I inquire.

"Harrison. I'm going to confess, or else they're going to kill me, man."


	10. Chapter 10: The Confession

Chapter 10

The Confession

**A/N: Thank you so much for your reviews! Sorry about the late chapter! Too many homework assignments. :/**

5:45 P.M.

I press the recording button on the phone. "Say that again?"

"I'm going to confess to the murders of Kai and Nya's parents," Harrison responds in a shaky manner.

"Where are you?" I inquire as calmly as possible, holding in my emotions of hopefulness.

"I'll meet you tomorrow at Buddy's Pizza tonight 6:00 P.M."

"Okay." He hangs up and I stop recording, pocketing the phone. _I wonder why he picked there of all places._

"Zane, what's up?" Kai asks.

"Harrison is going to confess to the murders," I reply, turning to face the group of astonished individuals.

"Okay, go on ahead you to," Kai says.

I nod and Pixal and I head outside of the birthing center, getting in the hover car. We drive to the place and park outside, waiting rather anxiously for Harrison to show up. It's already 6:09 now, and he still isn't here. I tap the steering wheel impatiently, chewing my lip as usual, and feel this pain in the back of my head. I groan, rubbing the back of it. It's been two weeks since I was released from the hospital and my head still occasionally hurts. I fall sometimes too.

"You okay?" Pixal inquires, touching my shoulder.

I nod and look up to see a figure clad in the same outfit I had seen him last, except that he is wearing a black cap to cover most of his face. "He's here."

"Are you certain it's him?" Pixal asks.

"I'm certain," I respond. _He's not easy to miss and he did attack me before._

We both exit the car and make our way inside, holding hands to seem less suspicious, though we're already engaged. "Act natural," I whisper in my fiancé's ear. We enter and I spot him sitting in the very rear of the restaurant; then we sit directly across from him. He's hunched over where I cannot see most of his face and makes me uncomfortable.

A waitress comes over with a red tray of three coffee cups and sets them down in front of us. "Enjoy," she smiles and ambles back to the kitchen.

I didn't realize a pizza place would have coffee and I merely hold the cup in my hands, feeling the warmth flow through my palms. "Well? You said you would confess."

"They're going to kill me. If I tell you, will you protect me from them?" Harrison asks.

"Depends on how much you know," I respond.

"Where is Jason?" Pixal inquires sternly.

"That's the problem. They took him," Harrison informs us.

"What?" Pixal and I exclaim in unison; then I lower my voice through gritted teeth.

"Who took him?"

"I need to be promised full protection first," Harrison responds.

I slam my hands down on the table, attracting a bit of unwanted attention, and sloshing the coffee. A bit spills over the edges. I grab him by his jacket and speak in his face. "Where is he?"

"Protection first," Harrison insists.

"Where is he?" I repeat, trying with all my will not to pound his head into the table. I can feel my hands shaking violently and Pixal grabs my arm, trying to pry me off him.

"Tell us about the murders first," she says.

"Alright," he begins, "Let me go and we'll sit down and have a nice talk."

Reluctantly I release him and sit back, taking the coffee cup in my hands again. He does the same and gulps his down casually; then sets it down, leaning forward over the table. I pick up the cup, staring at him intently, and drink a bit of it. "You know who we worked for, though he's always been a minor nuisance to you."

"Whiplash?" I inquire, raising my brows skeptically.

"So you overheard our conversation in the building." I nod. "Well, if that's the case, let's skip to-"

"No," I slam my cup down abruptly, shaking the table again. "No skipping," I say sternly.

"Zane, calm down," Pixal tells me, grabbing my arm a second time.

"I'm sorry," I apologize. _Did they even put caffeine in here? Sure, I've had sleep deprivation recently, but this is ridiculous._

I feel my eyelids trailing shut and force them to stay open. "Without further ado…why don't we go to the car?"

"Car?" I manage to say as my vision swims. _Oh no. Did he drug the coffee?_

"Always watch your drink, Zane," Harrison tell me with a smirk, but as I lurch forward and my head rests on the table, I can see he's not the man who called. Blackness fills my vision.


	11. Chapter 11: Till Death Do us Part

Chapter 11

Till Death Do us Part

**A/N: Thank you NinjaMelissa, A wild fangirl appears, Zanelover01, Ninjaofmagic01, FireIce, and RapidstarJ for your awesome reviews! **

I open my eyes to meet a swimming, red ceiling. I shut them and merely lie in an awkward position with one leg stretched out, the other bent halfway and my arms are crossed over my chest with my hands touching my shoulders.

"Zane, are you awake?" Pixal's lovely voice asks and a clammy hand rests on my arm.

I nod, my head rubbing against something hard and cold as well as sticky. _Wait, am I in the Monastery or is this somewhere else? I don't remember seeing a red ceiling before. _I reopen my weary lids, letting them drift around a room with black walls and I let my gaze fall on the black tile of the floor, stained bright red with blood. I touch my stinging neck and find it has a small laceration. "What happened?" I venture to ask.

"The man who drugged you took you as a hostage," Pixal responds. I shiver and she sits cross-legged, gently placing my head in her arms. I feel my warm body against hers and feel a sort of security, yet I don't know what she's talking about.

"What man?" I inquire.

"Harrison, don't you remember?" Pixal says.

"Harrison?"

"We met him because he was going to confess to the murders of-"

It hits me like a brick wall. Confession. Jason. Missing. I abruptly sit straight up and look frantically around for a sign of where we are. We're against the back left corner in a twenty-by-twenty area with red table in the middle of the room. Across from us is a red door and an inscription with silver letters is on it.

_Black Roses are not as Beautiful as Red Ones_

I've heard that phrase before at some point. Where though? Oh, yes, Kai told me, but that means…no. "Pixal, we need to get out of here," I say, pushing myself up to a standing position and she does likewise.

"We can't. It's locked," she informs me.

"No, you don't understand," I tell her, "Remember the week when we brought Kai, Jay, and Cole back from the cave?" She nods. "Kai told me about this place. He was taken and held here with Nya when they were young by a sadist he called Rigid."

"How do you know it's here?" she asks fretfully, clutching my arm.

"The inscription: Black Roses are not as Beautiful as Red Ones."

"What does it mean?"

"It means death is not as fun as torturing or inflicting pain on someone. The colors in this room represent blood and death," I say, pausing to let it all sink in.

"But how do we get out?" Pixal asks, her neon eyes widening.

"The window," I tell her, walking around the table and she sticks to me like glue.

"The window won't work. If you jump out, you'll die."

"No, Kai also told me this place has illusions so it's only two stories," I say, pushing the window up with her still clutching my arm.

I look down and feel a bit giddy at the looks of the height. Kai was not kidding. I'll need to get something the use like a rope so I take off my white shirt and begin tearing pieces of it into one long strip. Pixal seems to understand and lets go of my arm, waiting expectantly. I finish it in a few minutes and tie it to the table before letting the other end out the window. "Let me test it first. I'll be back before you know it, okay?"

"Okay. Be careful Zane," she tells me and kisses my cheek. "I love you."

"I love you too," I say and slip out the window, grabbing onto the cloth. I begin lowering myself down, yet something isn't right. The cloth starts to tear as I descend and I quickly climb back up, and something pierces my leg sending hot pain. I don't look and keep moving. I just grab onto the sill when it snaps and pull myself back up inside.

"We'll have to try another way," I tell her.

"What happened?" she asks as I shut the window and limp back to the corner.

"The cloth snapped."

"What about your leg?" she inquires, pointing to it.

I glance down to see it's all bloody and a piece of metal protrudes from it. It strangely doesn't hurt much. "I don't know."

"Let me take care of it," she says and sits next to me, grabbing the bottom of her purple dress.

"Leave it," I tell her, grabbing her slender wrist, "If you pull it out, I will bleed to death."

"Then…what now?"

"Wait. We have to wait for the man to come. First off though," I say, pulling out papers and a pen from my pocket, "I would like you, Pixal, to marry me." She stares at the blood stained objects and looks up at me with moist eyes. "I know this is sudden, but you never know what may happen. I was planning for something more romantic than this place though. Sorry."

"It doesn't matter," Pixal says, taking one of the papers and signing it, "As long as you are here. Thank you Zane." She hugs me gently and lets go so I can sign mine. I do and then produce a box from my other pocket. I open it to reveal a white diamond ring on a golden band, and a plain golden band too.

Pixal takes the plain one and slips it on my finger with trembling hands. I smile and slip hers on her ring finger; then we embrace again. We did it. We're finally married, despite the circumstances and all we've been through. We release each other again and I stare into her green eyes, lean in, and press my lips against hers. We kiss for a long time, until we need breath and pull away, both beaming. I caress her white cheek in my hand and she starts to cry. I wipe her tears off her gorgeous face and whisper to her, "Don't cry. It's going to be okay. We'll make it through, Dear."

"Oh, Zane!" she cries, throwing her arms around my neck, sobbing harder. I pat her back and we sit her, comforting one another. I will protect my wife, no matter what. We will get out of here.

**So…what did you think? The place they are in is from the ****fic, 'Flames From the Heart'.**


	12. Chapter 12: To Wait or to Escape?

Chapter 12

To Wait or to Escape?

**A/N: Thank you Firelce, NinjaMelissa, Ninjaofmagic01, and Dj6667013 for your fantastic reviews! **

**:D Okay, so this particular chapter is a bit different from most because I need to work on other types of writing. It's my first "real try" with romance (my least favorite genre, but with Zane I can tolerate it) and has a bit of emotional stuff too. The thriller comes in the next chapter. **

**So for any Zane and Pixal couple lovers, this is for you, enjoy!**

"Zane?" Pixal calls my name softly, leaning against my shoulder.

"Yes?"

"Where did you get the scar on your shoulder from?" she asks, tracing the old, closed wound from when I was thirteen. It tickles and I twitch a bit.

"From when the three men invaded the house in the village."

"That must have been painful," she says, hugging me tighter. It was, but the helplessness I felt when Jane and Grandmother were killed was even worse. There's nothing more painful than watching someone suffer and die without being able to help them.

"Pixal?"

"Yes?" she responds, running her fingers through my blond hair and snuggling closer to me.

"Will you promise me something?"

"What is it?"

"If something bad happens…save your self first," I tell her, turning and wrapping my arms around her.

"Zane, I could never do that," she replies, "You know I would do anything to protect you."

"Please, promise me you will," I implore her, "I can't lose anyone else close to me."

She stares up at me, her green eyes unreadable. "Please, Pixal."

"Alright, I promise," she says, taking my hands in hers. I smile and caress her moist cheek.

"Don't cry."

I lean in and kiss her forehead gently for a long time. I let my hands fall of her slender shoulders to rest on her thin waist and pull her in closer. Her stomach is pressed against mine and she takes my warm neck in her lovely hands. I move my moist lips away from her forehead and let them slide down her cheek to touch her lips. I press a bit harder, but not enough to smother her, ignoring the stabbing pain in my leg.

She's the first girl I've ever kissed. I married my first love and she's the only one for me in this lifetime. My wife smiles and kisses back with pleasantly cold lips, and runs two hands through my hair again. I feel my heart hammering through my chest.

We should be attempting to escape, not kiss and be affectionate right now. Affection. It's something I haven't experienced much in my lifetime, but it's wonderful. It's the greatest feeling I have ever known and I don't want to stop right now, nor ever really.

I lean forward and so does she, causing us to fall backwards against the wall, me sliding to the floor with her small figure on top. I feel my cheeks heat up and feel this sensation in my stomach that seems like adrenaline or something. It feels like I'm about to plummet, but it is pleasant and addicting at the same moment. I touch her smooth, silver hair and tickle her neck. She giggles and pulls away, tickling my nose. "Zane Julien," she beams, "You have terrible breath."

I chuckle and hug her gently, feeling her cold body against mine. "Everything's going to be okay. We'll make it out," I reassure her.

"I trust you, Zane. We will get out."

"For now, let's wait," I say. She nods, pushing my head back down with an index. I smile as she plays with my hair and slides her left hand down my chest, tracing my abs.

After a few minutes she falls asleep on me and I wrap both arms around her. In a few hours I begin to feel a bit thirsty and sick to my stomach. My leg feels hot and painful, enough I have to refrain from shifting every few seconds so as to not wake her up.

No sounds have reached my ears so far, except a little roach that had crept in the room earlier and disappeared into a crack in the tile. If Pixal had been awake, she would have chased after it all over this place. I shut my eyes wearily and find a sweet, soft sort of tranquility, despite the circumstances. I hear a few shifts that soon start to fade away.

"Zane, my son," a voice calls me belonging to the precious soul I lost so long ago.

"Father?" A man materializes in front of Pixal and I. His white hair is still kept neatly as ever, and he shifts his thick, framed glasses against the bridge of his nose.

"Come, my son. Set her down for a moment and get up."

I gently remove Pixal from my chest and gingerly set her delicate figure on the floor. I get up and Father takes my hand, ambling toward the window. Strangely, my leg doesn't feel any pain whatsoever.

We both peer out the window down the seemingly five or six story building to the ground below. Father turns around and sets a gentle hand on my shoulder. "Son, it's shorter than you or even Kai think. You could even jump down, Zane."

"Thank you, Father," I say and he pulls me into an embrace, still smelling of the same cologne he's always worn. I return it. I can hardly hold back the tears that threaten to take over me. "I miss you so much, Father."

"I miss you too, Zane," he responds in his caring way, "I need to leave, son. I love you."

"I love you too, Father," I say, hugging him a bit tighter before he gently pries me off.

He turns away. "Wait!" I set a hand on his shoulder, a tear slipping down my cheek. "When will you be back?"

"Soon, my son."

I open my eyes. Pixal is still asleep on my chest and my leg still throbs horribly. It was only a dream, but at least a pleasant one compared to many I have had. I now feel a bit…more peaceful, after having been able to see my father. _The window…could it be?_

I do the same to Pixal as I had in my dream and amble to the window, this time alone. I peer out. It does seem to have shrunk a bit since last time I looked, yet again, could it be? I swing both legs outside and stretch my hands out, feeling for the sill. My left one touches it and grasps it. I draw in a deep breath, waiting to gather up my strength and courage for this, the leap of faith. I grab the sill with my right hand as well…and jump.


	13. Chapter 13: Two Bereft of Aid

Chapter 13

Two Bereft of Aid

**A/N: Thank you NinjaMelissa and Ninjaofmagic01 for your reviews! Bonus chapter today! :D**

I feel my stomach drop as I fall into the unknown. I hit the floor without warning and land on one knee, panting. I get up and look to where the window is and realize its barely above one story high; then climb swiftly back up.

"Pixal, we need to get out of here," I say, hurrying over and shaking her shoulders.

Her eyes snap open and she sits up, knocking her head against mine. I ignore that and pull her by her arm to the window. "What's going on?" she asks.

"We need to leave. The place is less than two stories so we can jump down," I tell her, letting go of her arm.

She nods. Pixal swings her legs over the window and leaps out without any questions. "I'm down!" she shouts.

I do likewise and soon I'm with her, yet that's when things go awry. I hear a horn blaring and a black sedan shows up in front of us, flashing bright lights in our way. "Pixal, run," I tell her, grabbing her hand and bolt to the left of the vehicle. It turns toward us and I veer to away, onto the uneven asphalt.

"Zane, get out of the road!" Pixal yells and I redirect us to the side where a forest lays, plowing through the bushes.

We pass thick clusters of trees. I can hear the vehicle screech to a halt and the distinct noises of car doors opening and slamming. One click. Two clicks. Three clicks. Bang!

The tree next to us is shot, and my ears start ringing. I push Pixal in front of me and let go of her hand, bolting forward, but find the hanging things from the tree and other plants a bit difficult to pass. I get my hair caught in the thorns several times before pulling free into a clearing.

All the while I can hear the rustles of the bushes behind us and hear gunshots. One lands right next to my shoe. "Pixal," I halt and so she does too, "Keep going. I'll divert their attention and give us some time.

I push her forward again before she can argue and she turns again. "But Zane-"

"Now!" I yell as a bullet whistles though the air and strikes the ground in front of her. A patch of grass flies through the air and she nods, taking off away from me.

"Whoever is out there, tell me: what do you want?" I ask calmly. The firing ceases.

"On the ground, now!" an all-to-familiar voice demands. Jason.

I get on my knees, fighting the urge to tear him into pieces.

"Put your hands were we can see them." I place both against the back of my head as three figures emerge from the thick trees: Jason, Harrison, and the man who had been at the table who drugged me.

Jason gets in front of them, 22. Magnum PMR-30 raised at my head. The other two slip behind him Glock and AR-15 raised as well pointing at… "Jason!" I yell, not wishing to lose a witness, too late.

Bang!


	14. Chapter 14: Little Juliens?

Chapter 14

Little Juliens?

**A/N: Thank you Firelce, Dj6667013, Guest, and NinjaMelissa for your reviews! :D My brother found a video on YouTube for the new 2015 Ninjago sets. PM me if you want the link! :)**

Jason slumps to the ground in front of me, his left leg pierced by a bullet from Harrison's AR-15. "No!" I scream, hoping Pixal doesn't think I'm hit.

"Don't kill him!" a woman comes up behind them holding a .9 mm., resembling Victoria, yet not quite the same. "Whiplash wants them all alive!"

"Carmel, not right now, okay?" Harrison says, rolling his eyes. "You, robot! Where's that purple and white freak?"

"No one calls my wife that!" I retort, receiving a blow to my head from the other man's gun. I see a flash of white light and feel searing pain for a brief moment.

"Since when has she become your wife, kid?" Carmel asks.

"Today."

The group exchange glances and I snatch the .22 Magnum PMR-30 Jason had dropped; then fire at the nearest target, the man I don't know. Red sprays from his stomach and he screams.

I leap and do a quick sweep to Carmel's leg, knocking her to the floor and shoot at Harrison. I hit his gun and he drops it. I bolt away from them, glancing over my shoulder to see the man retrieving the AR-15.

I halt, pivoting on a heel and fire again. Missed. Harrison shoots but his gun jams. He curses loudly.

I shoot several times in rapid succession, but none of them seem to meet their mark. I feel a cold hand pull me behind a tree and turn with the gun pointed at her. "Pixal?" I whisper, immediately lowering my weapon.

"We need to go, Zane," she says and I nod. We both head away, but I sense something isn't right. I don't know what though.

After approximately five minutes, we both halt and I take in my surroundings. Thick trees and bushes are all to be seen as far the eye can go. "We need to find the road and walk alongside it."

"I say we head to the left and then go backwards, so we don't run into them again," Pixal proposes. I nod.

We keep moving with the only being our footsteps and insects swarming. The birds twitter on without any concern at all for our current plight, despite the fact that there were gunshots not that long ago.

I halt for a moment, putting my hands on my knees from the pain in my leg. I feel sick. Pixal doesn't seem to notice and keeps walking on for a few more feet. She turns around as I straighten up and keep moving.

"You okay?" she puts a hand on my shoulder. Even that feels like an immense weight and I put on a façade of optimism.

"Yes, I am. Don't worry." I gently remove her hand and she gives me an unconvinced look before resuming the toilsome walk for our survival.

My leg hurts a lot. I decide to start up a conversation to keep my mind off it. "Pixal?"

"Yes?"

"Have you ever wanted kids?" I inquire.

"Yes, a boy and a girl."

"Me too."

"Cyrus Borg…created me with the…um…" Pixal looks uncomfortable and turns away from me, hastening her footsteps. I wait for her to continue. "He…I…he…um Z-Zane."

"Yes?"

"He-my creator-he made me more human-like."

I don't know what she's getting at, but I press a little further. "How?"

"I am capable…" She turns three shades of red as she turns to face me again. "I am capable of…having children."

That's something I had never considered: having kids. I knew I would most likely adopt or not have someone to get married to at all until I met my wife. "What would you like to have named them?" I ask.

"Oh. I don't know. I'd love to have little Juliens running around though."

"And little Pixals," I add. We both chuckle, despite being a bit lost in this forest.

"I was thinking about it a few days ago," I say, "I was getting our rings and I was wondering if you wanted to adopt children after the wedding I had planned."

She blushes harder and squeezes my hand, swinging our arms back and forth. "Yes, I would love that."

"So…after we get out of here?"

She nods, beaming. We amble a few more minutes in silence. I feel each step cautiously and my sneaker touches something softer that gives way beneath me. Before I can react, I'm on the hard ground, covered in dirt on my knees. I gaze up. I'm in a pit.

"Pixal, you okay?" I turn and see her picking herself up.

"Yes, you?"

I nod, getting up with a bit difficulty from my throbbing leg and she helps me up. Either they will find us, or we'll starve to death in here. "On no," I mutter.

"What is it?"

"Pixal…I think we may have two options, both with consequences."


	15. Chapter 15: The Wait

Chapter 15

The Wait

**A/N: Thank you Dj6667013, A wild fangirl appears, NinjaMelissa, Ninjaofmagic01, StuffyJinx, and FireIce for your epic reviews! :D I made this chapter longer for you gals! Enjoy! :D :D **

**By the way JustCallMeDisc0rd3r is putting a poll on her profile if you would ****like to check it out. I can't figure out how to put one up anyway. :P**

Pixal purses her lips, probably already knowing the end result of both. Death. The thought of us lying here until we become skeletons makes me shudder. "Well…I suppose we could wait while we figure a way out," she says.

"Good thinking," I respond, plopping down with my legs crossed, but instantly recoiling from the pain in my leg. I wince, holding both hands next to the jagged object.

"Zane, are you feeling okay?" Pixal inquires, getting on one knee and putting her hands on mine. I nod unconvincingly.

"Let me see it." She gently pries mine off and leans closer to my leg, examining the wound. She touches it gingerly, sending hot pain in the laceration and I flinch.

"We need to take it out," she announces.

My eyes widen. "No, if you remove it, I will bleed to death."

"No, you won't. Marcy built your human body over your original one with tissue and blood, but you'll make it. If you don't remove it, you'll get tetanus. Do you want to lose your leg or die?"

"No."

"Then let me remove this." I nod somewhat reluctantly. Pixal tears the jeans, expanding the hole around the metal object so she has room to work with it. It stings horribly as she touches it gingerly with a delicate hand.

She pulls a bit and I flinch, clutching tightly whatever is near me: her leg. She inches it out a bit farther and I gasp, seeing my world twist and blur. Splotches of black fill my vision as my wife sets a comforting hand on my shoulder.

"Zane, it's okay. Just bear with it please. It will hurt a lot more if you leave it lodged in your leg."

"Why didn't you stop them?" Jane appears in front of me in a white room. I'm not in the hole anymore and Pixal and I are standing next to each other. The pain has vanished and my vision has cleared.

"My brother…he's hurt," Jane says and covers her face in her hands, sobbing. Blood appears on her blue nightgown she had been wearing the night she was murdered.

"Jane?" I call her name softly, reaching a hand out to touch her shoulder, but she quickly snaps her head up, brown eyes filled with rage.

"Now your wife will pay dearly for your mistakes!" I reach out to Pixal to touch her hand, yet she turns to look at me with teary, green eyes and vanishes.

"Pixal!" I yell, but my voice fails me. I drop to both knees, feeling all strength sapped from my body. "Please, spare her! Take me instead! Please!" I implore Jane.

"She shall _die_!"

Blackness. My eyes snap open and I scream. "Pixal!"

"It's alright, Zane," a gentle, white hand rests on my shoulder. I follow it, up a slender arm, to a shoulder, tracing back to my wife's lovely face. It was only a dream.

"Pixal?" I whisper, sitting up and throwing my arms around her.

I recoil. Big mistake. I glance down at my leg realizing I must have fallen unconscious and she removed the metal while I was out.

"Zane, are you okay, Honey?" she inquires, putting a hand against my back and pushing lightly on my chest with the other. I lay back down.

"Yes, it was only a nightmare." I gaze up at the stars and find I must have been unconscious for quite some time. Pixal had already bandaged my leg with part of her purple dress.

Crickets chirp while a chilly breeze blows up above and some down where we are. "Pixal?"

"Hmm?"

"Have you ever liked to gaze at the stars?" I ask.

"All the time. The Borg towers provides a nice view, yet here…it just is…different. The whole scene is rather peaceful, undisturbed."

"How about you?" Pixal asks.

"Yes, indeed it is tranquil," I respond as she lies down next to me. I smile and put an arm around her and gaze at the bright sliver of the moon.

"Zane?"

"Yes?"

"What do we do about tomorrow?"

"Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself."

I find my eyelids wandering shut and feel my wife's cold body snuggle closer to mine. _Everything's going to be okay. My brothers will find us. _A distant ringing reaches my ears, but soon is drowned out.

Kai:

"I better call Zane and find out what's going on," I say to Melissa and step out of our living room.

I dial my brother's number and it is answered on the first ring. "Hello, Zane?"

"It's Pixal. Listen, Zane and I are in trouble."

Several dozen thoughts flash through my mind and I press the record button on my phone. "What's the matter? If it's Jason, I'm going to kill him."

"No, Jason was shot."

"Good, and?"

"You remember when you told Zane about when you and Nya were picked up by a sadist you called Rigid?"

_Strange. Why would she bring that up? _"I wouldn't ever forget. Why?"

"He caught us."

"That's impossible. How could you know that?" I say, though my stomach feels a bit uneasy.

"There was an inscription on the wall. Black Roses are not as Beautiful as Red Ones," she responds.

"No, Pixal. Are you _sure_?"

"I'm _positive_," she says.

My stomach now feels sick and I hope I don't throw up. _Why would he come for Zane and Pixal? Will he apprehend me, my wife? My kids? My sister? _"Pixal, are you both in a house?" I ask.

"No, we escaped." I put a hand to my mouth in relief. "But we're in a forest nearby with Harrison and a woman named Carmel coming after us. I think Zane shot Rigid, although I'm not certain it's him."

"Can you put Zane on the phone?"

There is silence on the other end. "Let me wake him up. He's been injured and might need a minute to be fully functioning."

"Is he okay?" I ask, concerned.

"For now. His leg was pierced by a sharp, metal object and he might get tetanus," she responds and there's a rustling sound.

"Where are you two exactly?"

"In a deep pit."

_This is not good. _"Can you get out?" I ask a question with an obvious answer.

"No. Here's Zane."

"Hello?" my brother's worn-out voice comes from the phone.

"Zane, it me, Kai. You feeling okay?"

"Tired, but otherwise, well."

"Listen," I say, "did the man you shot have a laceration scar on his right hand?"

A pause. _Please tell me no. Please tell me it's not him._

"Yes."

My heart sinks, but that doesn't mean it's him. "Does he have a red and black beard with a hook in it?" I ask.

"I think so."

"How tall is he?"

"Approximately six feet tall."

"No…it's _him_," I say, nearly dropping the phone in the process.

"Who?"

"Rigid." Silence.

"Zane, you there?"

"Kai, get the others and bring weapons. They're armed with guns and extremely dangerous."

"Okay, can you-what?" I say, gaping at the phone that just hung up.

I stop the recording and call him again. No response. I try several more times. Still none. I set the phone on the red, kitchen counter and re-enter the living room with heavy legs. Melissa is reading a novel having put the babies to bed a few minutes ago. I fall to my hands and knees on the red carpet, feeling queasy. _Why did he show up now? He isn't going to kill them, is he? Phone. Call the others now!_

I push myself back up as Melissa gets off the couch, setting her book on the brown, coffee table. "Kai, what's the matter?"

"I just called Zane. They've been caught by Rigid."

Melissa covers her mouth in horror and I turn away, bolting for the cell phone. I dial the house phone number of the Monastery. "This is the Garmadon's residence," Sensei Garmadon says.

"It's me Kai," I respond in a rushed voice. "Am I on speakerphone? Are the others around?"

"Hold on." I pace to the living room floor. "Go ahead, Kai."

"Zane and Pixal have been captured by someone I know."

Gasps come from the other end. "Are you with them?"

"No. I called him, but he battery went dead. They've been taken by a mad sadist who once held Nya and I captive."

"Kai, are you sure it's him?" Nya's anxious voice comes over the line.

"I'm sure, description, the sadist inscription, the scar are all his."

"Please, Kai. Don't mess with me, please," my sister sobs.

"I'm not!" I yell, causing Melissa to jump, "I would _never_ mess around with you about him! He's back and he's going to kill Zane and Pixal! He may even be after us!"

"Who is he?" Lloyd's voice sounds distant from the phone.

"Not right now, Lloyd," I say with a hint of a threat. The others begin talking loudly on the other end.

"Listen to me! They described their location and Zane said he needs us! Meet me up at my house." I hang up before anyone else can say something. I drop the phone on the rug, and put a hand to my sick stomach. The way he whipped and beat me, the way he dug his filthy hands and nails into my flesh while my eleven-year-old sister watched helplessly: it's nauseating. It's inhumane.

"Kai, you okay?" Melissa asks, putting a hand against my back.

I nod and she hugs me from behind, leaning on me, her soft, golden hair brushing against my neck. I fight the anger mixed with tears and turn around, embracing her back. "Melissa," I say, "I need to leave to save Zane and Pixal when the others get here, okay?"

"Okay, be careful, Kai," she responds and presses her moist lips to mine.

I return the kiss. I feel a little better for some reason, despite the situation and the nausea. I grab her slim waist with both hands, and she opens her mouth. I open mine and slip my tongue into hers, feeling her warm mouth. Her tongue touches and that's when it all turns bad.

My stomach twists horribly and I pull away running to the bathroom. I practically throw the door open, get on my knees, and let the bitter stuff force itself up my throat, into my mouth, into the porcelain throne. I puke several more times before I look at it with a metallic taste in my mouth. Blood. _Poison? Am I having a relapse?_

Zane:

"The battery's dead," I inform my wife and smack a mosquito who had attempted to make a meal out of me.

"No," she puts her head in her hands and I wrap an arm around her.

"It's okay, Pixal. It's okay, dear," I reassure her. She turns around and hugs me tightly, her fingers closing around my chest with vice-like grips.

"I'm afraid, Zane. What if we don't make it?" I gently pat her silver hair.

"We will, sweetie. We will."

"How can you be so sure?"

"My brothers and I have saved each other numerous times and we've always found each other…no matter what. Now, all we need to do it wait."

"Alright, Zane. Get some sleep, sweetie."

"May I have a kiss from this beautiful, young lady first?" I ask, gaining a sheepish grin from my wife. Pixal blushes and gives me a little peck on my cheek.

We cuddle together, our bodies against each other, and she traces a finger on my chest. Again, my heart starts pounding like a hammer, but the moment is interrupted by a bark somewhere above us. No, it's not a bark. A howl. My blood chills at the realization of what's out there. Wolves.

"Pixal, where's that thing from my leg?" I ask calmly, hoping she's not too alarmed.

"Here," she hands it to me. "They probably won't come here."

"No, they will."

"Why?" she asks, her eyes widening.

"They smell my blood."


	16. Chapter 16: Relapse and the Drive

Chapter 16

Relapse and the Drive

**A/N: Thank you A wild fangirl appears, NinjaMelissa, LucyBrick123, Firelce, and Dj6667013 for your spectacular ****reviews! This is all in Kai's perspective for now, but we will get back to Zane and Pixal's plight…soon.**

Kai:

I get up, washing my hands and face in the sink. I lean over, letting the water run for a while, just so Melissa doesn't see how bad it is. It's…horrible.

_Am I really going to die, or is this some life-long disease? No, don't think about it now. Just focus on finding Zane and Pixal before it's too late._

I note my unusually pale face and lips without any color. I hope no one's going to notice, because all four of us need to look for the two.

I turn the knob so the water stops flowing and open the door, entering the living room where my brothers and sister are already gathered. Sensei Wu and Garmadon are present as well.

"Kai, you don't look too good. Are you feeling okay?" Melissa asks, slipping her slim hand in mine.

I sigh inwardly. "Yes."

The others give me an unconvinced look. I habitually wipe my mouth and nearly start at the sight of blood, but quickly regain my composure.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Jay inquires.

I wave it off. "Yeah, seriously, I'm fine. Now, Zane and Pixal's location is a bit far away, and only Nya knows how to get there."

All eyes fall on my sister. Her hands are holding her baby and she seems quite afraid, trembling for the first time in a while. Jay puts a hand on her shoulder and gives her a sympathetic look.

"I'm sorry, Nya, but at the time I was unconscious so I don't know how to get there," I apologize, staring at the carpet.

"It's not your fault," she says not too reassuringly, but still sounds a bit understanding in a sense. "I'll direct you guys."

"You will?" I ask, looking up hopefully.

"Of course I will. Zane and Pixal are in danger and I can't just keep away from the past, brother."

"Then Marcy, could you watch Emma for us?" Jay requests.

"Certainly," the older lady replies, holding her arms out as Nya hands her the chubby, little ball of joy.

I smile. My niece is so cute. Interesting that my younger sister had a kid first, and married Jay.

He's a pretty good husband, but he's a little on the squirrely side and a bit immature. He's improved under my watchful eyes after several months of…confrontations.

I hope Zane and Pixal are doing well. I head there are wolves in that area…and Zane is injured. They'll go after blood.

"Kai? Kai, are you in there?" Melissa waves a hand in front of me, snapping me out of my thoughts.

"Uh...yeah?"

"Are you going to sit down, Honey?" she asks, twirling a bit of blond hair in her fingers.

"Oh, yeah," I say, hastily sitting, but find myself I meeting the carpet and hard floor beneath it.

Silence. If everything had been normal everyone would have burst out laughing at me. I pick myself and sit on the loveseat, a bit embarrassed at the fact that I am being clumsy at such a crucial time.

"We better pack some camping equipment and survival gear just in case," Lloyd announces.

We all agree and pack the stuff, me being fond of such things that I store in our garage. Marcy agrees to remain behind with Melissa, Emma, and the twins. The boys and I stuff the gear in my Hover Dodge Ram; then we bid the girls and babies farewell. While doing so I pinched a half-empty bottle of pills from the kitchen cabinet for my problem and got a few capsules of charcoal for the poison.

We get in the truck. I sit by myself in the corner of the trunk, hoping the boys will ignore me. Cole is driving and Lloyd is next to him in the front while Jay sits closer in the back to where they are. Nya took her hover car and is driving in front of us. I hug my knees to my chest, my stomach sick from the driving and the relapse.

Jay scoots next to me after two and half hours and I turn away from him, rolling my eyes. _Just great!_

"Hey, Kai," he says.

"Hey," I mumble, hoping he with hush up soon. That's highly doubtful though.

"You want to play 'Twenty Questions'?" he asks.

"Oh no," I mutter. "No, not now Jay."

"Why?"

I usually catch on fire when flared up by his annoying ways, but now I feel cold, so cold and alone. I miss my parents a lot. I turn further away from him, shutting my eyes and leaning my head against the trunk. Jay nudges me.

"Hey, are you feeling okay?" Jay asks.

"No," I respond coldly.

"Do you have a fever?" he inquires and puts a hand on my forehead. I push him off me, nettled by his inquisitiveness.

"Just leave me alone. I'm car sick, okay?" I snap at him.

"Sorry! Do you need Cole to stop the car?"

"No! Just go away!" I yell.

"Hey, everything okay back there?" Lloyd's voice sounds a bit concerned. I open my eyes, staring at the asphalt below.

"Yeah, it's just that Mister Grumpy Pants is car sick," Jay calls back.

"Do need us to stop?" Cole shouts. I roll my eyes, but feel my stomach telling me otherwise.

No matter how much I hate to admit it, I better stop before everyone finds out and takes me back home. I could also get an opportunity for a pill or two perhaps. I nod. "He said 'yes'!" Jay yells.

The truck pulls over onto the side of the road where lots of bushes lay. I get out of the truck, my leg nearly asleep from the drive, and slip into the bushes. Once I'm certain no one is around, I pop two pills in my mouth and swallow. I choke on the second one. I puke a few times too and am about to turn back to the vehicle when the bushes behind rustle. I freeze. Something snarls that makes my hair stand on edge.


	17. Chapter 17: Grey Friends

**A/N: Thank you FireIce for reviewing! In this chapter it does show what happened to Zane and Pixal. This comes to the fun part. He he. Let the long, evil road begin…now.**

Chapter 17

Grey Friends

A shaggy, grey furred tail protruding from a thick cluster of bushes swishes back and forth only five feet away from me. I remain motionless, barely breathing as I wait. My hand rests on the concealed gun behind my back, and I slowly begin drawing it out.

"Hey, Kai! You coming or what? We might leave you here, dude!" Cole yells.

_Dang it! _I pull my weapon out as the tail disappears in the bushes and a wolf lunges out at me, claws extended. I fire. Missed. Its heavy weight is on my chest, pushing me to the leafy ground and I drop the gun.

"Kai, are you okay?" Lloyd calls.

"I could use a little help here!" I shout and roll to the right, narrowly avoiding the wolf's fangs that are aimed for my jugular.

I grab the gun and fire, hitting its underbelly and shoot its head. The animal drops dead.

"Kai, you can't kill an endangered animal!" Jay's voice comes behind me.

"Jay, that's not the point right now," Nya says.

"It's not dead," I mumble, pushing the mass of fur off me and I stand up, holstering my gun. "Call the animal rescue." I walk past them and get back in the trunk.

I can hear Jay dialing and Nya comes up to me. "Are you hurt?" she inquires.

"No, let's just keep going," I say, turning away from her. After five minutes of Jay trying to tell the dummy on the phone where we are, the guys get back in and we resume the mundane drive.

Unfortunately, it's contains more than a bit angst for me because I feel like puking the entire trip. I manage though. Despite the fact that Jay is running his motor mouth the entire time, things seem pretty peaceful here. I zone out of my brother's annoying as well as non-amusing stories and jokes.

We keep driving for five more hours until I'm going crazy with mosquitoes and no-see-ums biting me at every opportunity. Cole finally stops the truck in front of a black cottage with a red roof.

"So, I said to the man 'I'll take care of the problem all right' and he gets really mad and-" Jay stops blabbering upon sight of the miserable, old building.

"Boy, that's one creepy house!" he yells, abruptly standing up.

I instantly cover his mouth and push him back down. "What are you doing?" I whisper fiercely in his ear, "You're going to get Zane, Pixal, and all of us killed with that mouth of yours!"

I catch a muffled 'sorry' and let go of him; now to search for my brother and future sister-in-law. I know you're out there.

Zane:

TWO DAYS LATER: 3:35 A.M.

"Are they near?" Pixal whispers in my ear. "I wish I could help get us out, but my hook has jammed."

"It's okay, dear. It's not your fault," I respond in a worn-out voice and lick my parched lips. A howl is close off to our left. I cover her mouth with a clammy, trembling hand and tighten my grip on my weapon. We've been fending off the wolves for quite some time and I don't know how we can keep up at all.

I can hear a soft rumble not too far away and artificial beam appears above us emanating from a flashlight. I shield my eyes for a moment and a rope is thrown down the hole. I don't think this is wise, but with the wolves around, I'm not taking any chances of being unable to get my wife out of here.

"Pixal, you go up first," I say, ushering her forward with a gentle nudge.

I pick her up as high as possible to give her a boost up. She grabs the rope and begins to climb with her feet against the wall, with quite a bit of ease. Afterwards I hear a slight gasp and a whisper I cannot make out.

"Is everything okay? Pixal?"

"Y-yes. Zane, you need to hurry up."

I follow suit. Something in her voice doesn't sound right at all, but there's no time for that. My leg feels like its on fire and it hurts whenever I apply pressure or weight to it, slowing me down. I'm only halfway through, yet I involuntarily let go.

My back hits the dirt hard, and I cough from the impact before forcing my tearing, weary legs to keep moving. My wound's infected, which makes things far worse, but I manage to climb almost to the top before it gives me more trouble.

I'm also weak from not eating or drinking for two days and this morning. My fingers tremble violently and threaten to let go when a strong a pair of hands grips my right arm, lifting me up out of the blasted hole.

I get up and instantly realize Pixal and I should have remained in the pit. Harrison. I look behind him and see my wife being shoved into the SUV. I wrench my hand away, but he grabs me and shoves me in the back next to her. "Pixal, are you hurt?" I ask anxiously.

"Yes, and are you feeling any better?" my wife inquires, putting a hand on mine.

"Just a little dizzy is all and my leg isn't too good," I respond, making me sound nonchalant, but she looks very concerned.

Carmel is behind the wheel of the vehicle and Harrison climbs in the back with ropes. He binds us with our hands in front and then shuts the door as a wolf slams into the front windshield.

"Drive, now!" Harrison shouts.

The SUV starts and Carmel drives horribly, enough to make my stomach churn. Pixal grabs my arm tightly the entire way until we screech to a halt in front of the dreadful cottage. My heart sinks.

_This place is so remote that how can Kai or the others find us now? We're going to perish here. No! I can't give up. Pixal needs to survive, even if I don't._

Harrison opens the door and yanks us both out of the car. I force my legs to move toward the cottage, yet everything is disoriented to me. I watch my feet on asphalt, grass, dirt, cement, tile, and now we stop at concrete painted black. I look up.

I grab Pixal and pull her behind me, and gaze at the two posts in the back corners of the red room. To my right is a wooden rack with various sharp objects and weapons. In front of us is a bucket of water, and beyond it is a table with leather restraints. To my left is a plain, white bed.

No. On it is someone who deserves to die, but someone who's a witness. Jason. I hold my breath as I am pushed forward and wind up on my knees.

I turn around. "Pixal! Don't harm her or I swear I'll-"

"This is for you, not her," Harrison says, locking the door and pocketing the key in his drab coat.

He ambles to the weapon rack as Carmel grabs my shoulders. I'm too weak to resist and simply watch him take a whip from the rack. He cracks it and grabs me, tossing me onto the bed like a rag doll. My eyes widen as this scene from so when I was thirteen comes to life.

FLASHBACK:

"Zane, get that useless butt of yours in the room, now," Jason sternly demand in a whisper and turns around to smile at Jane and Grandmother. "I'm taking Zane to wash the clothes, okay?"

"Sure, were leaving anyway," Jane says and heads out the door.

I limp into the dreadful room and stand with my back to the bed, my hands into fists at my sides. I hate him. I hate him because he's a liar, a killer, and a child abuser. Jason shuts the door, sets a bucket of water down, and shoves me onto the bed.

I try not to cry or scream as he grabs leg and squeezes the wound. It hurts a lot. He lets go and slips a hand under the bed, producing a whip that he cracks. I scream and he covers my mouth, pushing my head down, hard; then grabs me by my hair, yanking me to my feet. He turns me around as I punch and kick him futilely, and dunks my head under the cold water in the bucket.


	18. Chapter 18: The Torture

Chapter 18

The Torture

**A/N: Thank you NinjaMelissa, LucyBrick123, A wild fangirl appears, RapidstarJ, StuffyJinx, Firelce, and Dj6667013 for your awesome reviews! :D**

**Just a forewarning, this is a more violent and a darker chapter.**

My failing arms find and grab Jason's hands, striving to wrench him off as my lungs beg for air. I open my mouth, screaming and water fills my throat. I choke. It hurts a lot and I can taste the musty liquid that probably came from that filthy lake.

END OF FLASHBACK

"You must know how this scene goes, Zane Julien," Harrison smiles, grabbing the plastic, blue bucket and approaching me.

I try to get up, but I collapse from the starvation taking its toll, and simply stare at the water. Perhaps I could drink it when he dunks my head in.

"No!" Pixal wails, tears streaking her lovely face and Carmel holds down her arms.

"It's okay, don't cry," I tell her, knowing I won't be.

I have to remain strong for her, and for my brothers. Harrison grabs my blond hair and shoves my head into the water. I let him and instantly realize this is undrinkable just like the other one; then start to struggle, my bound arms flailing.

He pushes my head down further, where I can make out dirt dispersing throughout the water. I stop, waiting for him to pull me out and the dispersed soil settles on the bottom of bucket.

My lungs are bursting and my chest feels like it's going to explode. I open my mouth, bubbles floating from my gasps.

I swallow some of it and choke violently as my head is yanked out of the watery grave. It tastes musty.

Air, the sweet air I have taken for granted, fills my deprived lungs. A woman's cries filter through my wet ears while I gag on the water and spit some out.

"No! Please, stop hurting him! Zane, no!" Pixal screams. I turn my head and see my poor wife, trying to wrench away from Harrison's accomplice.

"Pixal, it's alright. It's alright," I say, attempting to calm her down.

It's futile. She's crying hysterically and it pains me to see her this way.

"Let her go," I demand, turning to Harrison, still on my aching knees.

He chuckles sadistically and cracks the whip, producing a sharp, dreadful sound that echoes throughout the large room.

"Pixal, It'll be fine. This has happened to me before. It's nothing new."

Harrison grabs me by my arm and drags me to my feet, pushing me toward the left post at the far end of the room. I intentionally make my legs collapse beneath me and I hit the floor face down; then feel me being brought back up by my captor.

"Zane!" Pixal yells and I hear this blunt noise. Silence. I whip my head around and see my wife is unconscious on the floor by Carmel's black boots.

_No one hurts Pixal! _

I wait as Harrison unbinds my hands and then pivot on a heel. I grab the back of his neck with both hands, pulling his head forward into my left knee. I go to sweep him and he does the same, causing us to clash. I fall on my back and he lunges at me as I attempt to get up. I'm not fast enough.

He lands a blow to my head and swings his fist for another one. I put my hands up to block them and push my feet against his waist to keep him from getting to close. I kick his shin, but it doesn't faze him and he keeps trying to move forward. He finally moves away, and his leg is raised as I back up. It lands between my legs.

That's it. I'm out. I roll over, gasping and pain is all I can think about right now. I feel another kick to my ribs this time and another in the previous place. I can hear scuffling and put my hands where it hurts and feel it's all wet with blood.

I shut my eyes as Harrison comes back and I hear the familiar crack of the whip. I open my eyes at the last second and see it coming down at my face.

Searing, hot pain goes through my face and down my chest from the little, sharp ends that imbed themselves deeply into my flesh. He yanks the dreadful weapon out and lashes me again, on my legs this time, and I habitually put up my forearm for the next blow. It strikes and I can't feel anything anymore.

I look up to find he is not here anymore. Pixal isn't either, nor is Carmel. I stand up in full-fledged panic, but realize there's no more pain or blood.

I turn to my right and see my father looking at me with sadness in his icy, blue eyes. "Father?"

"My son," he says and approaches me and I do likewise until we are face-to-face. He sets a hand on my shoulder with a gentle, yet solemn smile on his aged face. "The next few weeks are going to be hard for you, Zane. You will suffer many hardships and so will your wife. Don't worry, your brothers will find you."

Father vanishes. I blink and now I'm in a forest, sitting on the edge of a truck's trunk. In front of me Kai is speaking to Jay, or more like shouting. "What the heck was that for? You revealed our location and now what do we do!"

"I'm sorry! By the time you told me, it was already too late! If I had known there were wolves I wouldn't have!" Jay shouts back.

"Goodness Gracious! Did you seriously think I told you to stay put for nothing? Look at what happened to Lloyd!" Kai points to me.

"I didn't mean to!" Jay protests.

Kai throws his hands up in frustration and stalks off the side of the road, disappearing through a group of trees.

I jump off the truck without trying. "Kai, where are you going?" I ask, but my voice is Lloyd's and I feel this sharp pain in my abdomen.

Nya puts a hand on my shoulder. "Lloyd, be careful. You're not well enough to move around yet."

"Hands off me," I say, shoving her away and follow Kai as stealthily as possible.

I must be seeing and hearing everything from Lloyd's eyes and ears. I walk through a cluster of bushes and see the red figure stooping over not ten feet away. I duck behind a tree without trying and peer around it. Kai is vomiting blood. _Is this really happening or is it a dream?_

_ "__Zane?" Lloyd's voice appears in my head._

_I try to respond, but I cannot and merely wait._

_ "__I know you can hear me. Listen, I have a device on me that'll transmit our signal to you and allows you to see and hear everything I do, but only when you're unconscious. Find our location."_

Now I see Lloyd or myself glancing down. There's blood on his stomach and claw marks on his gi.

I look up to find water being thrown on me and suddenly, the scene melts away to Harrison in front of me, throwing an empty, blue bucket down on the floor. My wrists and arms ache with a dull throb and I find them both cuffed on either side of me, my body spread eagle to a torture post. The man is holding a metal rod.

"I'll see you in a few hours for questioning, robot," Harrison spits on the floor and turns to leave.

He suddenly whirls around and slams the rod between my legs again. I double over in pain. He chuckles and departs, shutting the door and locking it with a click, sealing my long imprisonment.

I gasp, and look over to where Pixal lays, still unconscious. She moans and lifts her head before standing up wildly. "Zane?"

"Pixal," I call her. She turns around and her mouth drops agape at the sight of me; then immediately runs up to me.

She glances down my entire body in horror. "What did he do to you?"

"I don't really want to talk about it." I wince afterwards, hoping I didn't offend her, but also because of the pain. "Pixal, I'm sorry."

"Why would you be sorry?"

"If it weren't for me bringing you to that restaurant, you would have been safe."

She caresses my cheek with a tear slipping down hers. I wish I could comfort her, but the restrains won't allow it.

"No, it was my decision. How could he have done this to you? You're bleeding…everywhere."

"It's okay. I was unconscious most of the time."

"No, it's not okay! You're hurt badly!" I look at her, surprised at her sudden outburst, but she looks rather anxious.

"I am. I've had it worse, dear." I smile in an attempt to lighten the mood, yet she won't have any of it.

"I need to treat your wounds."

"With what?" I ask.

We both glance down at my feet and see a first aid kit on the floor. _Why would he do this? Perhaps he wishes for my wife to keep me alive._

Pixal grabs it, getting on her knees and opens it, and rummaging through its contents. "I'll need to treat them, but there's not much and no spare shirt or anything for you after I finish, so I'll have to use my dress."


	19. Chapter 19: A Road of Pain

**Chapter 19**

**A Road of Pain**

**A/N: Thank you NinjaMelissa, LucyBrick123, A wild fangirl appears, Firelce, ****Winter T. hedgehog 01, RapidstarJ,** and Dj6667013 for your fantastic reviews! 

**Even though lots of this is (and will be) dark and depressing, the ending of this fic will be sweet and happy.**

After lots of work on Pixal's side, and intense pain on mine, she had successfully cleaned and bound all the lash wounds with more than a bit of trouble from me.

The wounds caused from the metal rod couldn't be helped much, besides that she had disinfectant.

She had bandaged the lacerations with part of her purple dress. I'm positive Harrison continued beating me while I was unconscious and I can't believe I hadn't passed out it hurt so much.

There's a bottle of water and a bowl of soup not too far away. It way be poisoned, but I'm so thirsty that I don't care.

Pixal notices me staring at it and grabs the bottle, undoing the lid, dropping it on the floor, and putting it up to my parched lips.

I eagerly wait as she tilts it and gulp as much water down as possible. She eventually takes it away and goes to the bowl.

She uses a spoon to get some and brings it up to my lips as well. I smile before sipping it gratefully. She starts to put more in it.

"What about you?" I ask.

"I don't need any to sustain myself," she says, giving me more. For a while, we both are silent, and she continues feeding me.

When it's finished, she sets it down and wipes my mouth with her hand. My arms ache and feel like they're tearing.

"Thank you, dear."

"No need to, sweetie," she smiles grimly.

Pixal puts everything away and pushes the kit aside; then stands in front of me. I wish you didn't have to be chained like that and could rest. I smile faintly. "As long as you're here, I don't mind," I tell her.

My wife steps closer to me until our chilled noses are touching one another's and she embraces me under my spread out, aching arms, her pressing her cold body against my warm one. I would hug her back if I could, and right now I have a strong urge to do so.

"Zane, Honey?"

"Yes?"

"I'm afraid," she says, leaning her head on my shoulder.

"Of what, sweetie?" I ask, though the answer is obvious.

"Of losing you, of remaining here for the rest of our lives, of never seeing Mr. Borg again."

"Pixal," I call her again.

"Yes?" she responds, letting go of me and grabbing my cheeks. Her neon, green eyes stare directly into my icy, blue ones.

"We will make it out," I reassure her and lower my voice, "The others are searching for us in the forest nearby."

"What? How did you know that?"

"Lloyd can contact me whenever I'm unconscious."

"I wouldn't have believed that if it weren't for the fact that you said that, but I do. Thank you, Zane."

She leans in and closes the gap between us, her moist lips pressing against mine. I can never like it more, the taste of mint touching my tongue.

It feels…good. I cannot think of how to describe it in words, how much it comforts me. Pixal pulls away after a few minutes and I regain my breath.

"How are you feeling?" she inquires.

"Terrible," I state blandly, hoping for another kiss.

My lovely wife runs a gentle hand through my blond hair and gives me a peck on the forehead. "Now are you feeling better?"

I smile sadly and nod. I wish she would be far away from here, safe, and happy without having to care for me. If I hadn't brought her, she would be well off now.

"Go to sleep if you can, Honey," Pixal pop kisses my cheek and sits down cross-legged.

I shut my eyes and almost instantly feel my thoughts being drowned out by a forest. I'm Lloyd again and he's sitting down in front of a campfire, tossing a few twigs aimlessly in it. He starts.

_"__I see you're asleep again, or knocked out. I hope it's the former, brother. If you can hear me, just know that we've found the pit you and Pixal were in and are going to follow car tracks to find you two tomorrow."_

Lloyd groans and puts a hand on his stomach. I can feel the pain he is in, and everything else he feels.

"You okay there, Lloyd?" Cole asks, setting a water bottle down that he had been drinking from.

"Yeah, it's just my stomach…I really hate stitches, you know that? Was that really necessary?"

"Do you want bile to spill out of your stomach and kill you?" Kai quirks a brow and stands up.

"No…where are you going?" Lloyd inquires.

"I think I dropped my knife back there," the fire ninja points to another cluster of trees to his left and our right, him sitting across from us.

"Um…okay," Lloyd says and sits down.

Kai ambles away and my brother that I'm sensing everything through fidgets with his gloves pulling one off to look at a scar on his palm.

"I'm…uh…going to use…the bathroom," Lloyd announces and walks away from Jay, Nya, and Cole, who are having a discussion of what to do next.

_"__Yeah…so, I'm not really using the bathroom, so don't worry…uh Zane. I'm just a bit suspicious at the fact that Kai is excusing himself every ten minutes or so."_

Lloyd keeps moving for a few more seconds in silence.

"Zane! No! Do not hurt him!" Pixal's voice interrupts something Lloyd says and now I'm in the concrete room again.

I sense something hot and twist my head around to see red polished fingernails holding a hot iron, slowly closing the gap between the tool and me.


	20. Chapter 20: A Futile Effort

Chapter 20

A Futile Effort

**A/N: Thank you NinjaMelissa, A wild fangirl appears, Awesomegirl01, Stuffy Jinx, Dj6667013, and FireIce for your awesome reviews!**

"What are you doing?" I demand frantically.

"Questioning you," Carmel says, adjusting her black bracelet, with silver spikes protruding from it and pushes a few stray, blond hairs back. I glance around and find Pixal is absent.

"Where is she?" I shout.

"Don't worry, she's in the car so she won't get in the way. We're moving after this."

"What do you want?" I ask.

"Answers. Why were you in that cave six years ago?"

It should be safe to tell her such a minor detail. "Your hit man kidnapped me. I was in an alley, waiting for Jason to get me."

"What do you know about the golden weapons?"

"What? I've never heard of them before," I respond desperately, hoping I sounded truthful enough.

"Liar. You're the Ninja of Ice, caretaker of one of the four golden weapons." She shoves the hot iron mere inches away from my face.

"I guess you haven't been around here recently. I _was _the caretaker of the weapons. However, I destroyed all of them not too long ago," I say tentatively, eyeing the hot iron.

"Foolish ninja," she mutters and thrusts it at my chest.

It burns and I scream in sheer agony, not even attempting to hold it in. Being lashed is one thing; being burned is another form of pain, another form of torture; another form of inhumanity.

She pulls it away, tearing part of my hot skin with the iron, and I gasp, letting my head hang down in relief. My flesh smells foul and it hurts enough I cannot find anything else to say, but something that will enrage my captor.

"No mortal can hold all four of the weapons at once." Carmel shoves the iron in a bowl of hot coals and crosses her arms, letting her black sleeves fall down a bit more.

"I'm not a mortal!" I screech, unable to hold in my burning rage any longer. "I did die in a sense. I blew up! There was nothing left but a piece of my face for my beloved family to bury!"

She uncrosses her arms, looking rather surprised at my sudden outburst. "Then how come you're here?" she asks, sounding a bit skeptical.

"I came back to life! I am a robot!" I yell, feeling this boiling sensation in the pit of my stomach.

"Nonsense. You have blood."

"Cut my wrist," I say, staring straight into her auburn eyes.

"What?"

"Cut it!" I shout, making her start. Marcy had told me that she kept my wrists the way they were and they would only seem more human.

Carmel pulls a knife out of the back of her jeans and slits it. It stings a bit, but no blood comes out. I glance down and see a few wires and gears are exposed and look back up at her.

"How did you destroy them?"

"The Overlord made them into armor and I touched it until my heart stopped," I say, feeling a bit calmer and sadder at the thought.

The only door in the room is practically thrown open and Harrison pokes his head through the opening. "Carmel! We need to leave, now!"

"What about Zane?"

Harrison rushes in and pulls a key out of his pocket; then unlocks my cuffs. They feel raw and I moan as my legs give in. Harrison stops my fall and puts me on him in a piggyback manner.

No P.O.V.

"Kai," Lloyd calls his sick brother from behind a tree.

The fire ninja straightens up and turns to see him. "W-what is it, Lloyd?" he inquires in a panicky voice, his dark eyes wide. Silence.

"Are you still poisoned?" Lloyd ventures to ask.

"W-what? Wait, no. Why would you think so?"

"Kai, don't give me that. I want the truth."

For a moment the fire ninja, anxious to evade a confrontation, simply stares at his younger brother. He sighs. He doesn't like lying and decides to give in before any more trouble is caused.

"Yes, Lloyd. I'm having a relapse."

"You…you are?" the green ninja says, quite taken aback.

"Please don't tell the others," Kai says.

"No way. Sorry, but you need to go to the hospital," Lloyd responds and turns around to leave.

"Wait!" Kai calls him.

The green ninja halts. "What?"

"You'll waste time if you send me alone. We need to find Zane and Pixal before it's too late. That's why I came."

"No, we need you alive too. One of us can take you to the emergency room while the rest of us will keep looking."

Lloyd resumes stalking back toward the truck, but Kai grabs his arm. He wrenches away as the fire ninja turns him around and holds onto his shoulders.

"You can't do this. I'm the witness and I know how horrible this man is. My sister cannot do this alone, please!"

Lloyd pulls away and starts going back. "You're no better than your father!" Kai yells, boiling with rage.

Lloyd turns around and punches him in the jaw, hard enough to knock him onto the ground. "I am _not_ like him! I never was and I never will be! My father is good now, but he once abandoned his family! _I'm _not going to do that!"

Kai gets up and the former grabs his gi, pulling him only inches away from his face. "I'm sorry, but this is for your own good."

"Hey, guys!" Cole yells from the truck, "You need to get over here now! We found where Zane and Pixal are!"

"What?" Kai and Lloyd exclaim in unison.

"We'll talk about this later," the green ninja says, letting his brother go. Both ninja make it to the truck and see Jay, Cole, and Nya huddling over a phone.

"Well?" Kai asks impatiently.

"The kidnappers sent us a video," Jay responds, handing the phone to him.

Zane's arms are chained to the posts and spread out and his head is hanging down, limp. He's unconscious and Harrison steps in front, looking directly at the camera.

"He is going to confess. I'll break him, but first, I have an important message for Kai and Nya."

"Oh. My. Overlord," Lloyd gasps.

Harrison turns around and slams a metal rod into Zane's rib cage. His body shakes from the impact, yet he doesn't stir at all, increasing everyone's concern.

Kai turns away for a moment, his face paler than before and Lloyd holds a hand to his mouth. There are purple and blue bruises covering his body and there's blood all over his bare chest, arms, and jeans.

"If you two do not drive to Jamanukai Village and get to the tea house by November 12, Zane and Pixal shall perish will great amounts of pain. We'll see you two soon."

The video ends and the others exchange looks. "No…Kai. We need to go," Nya says.

"But what about them?" Kai asks, pointing at the others.

"We'll get another vehicle and catch up to you soon," Jay informs him.

"Okay, see you guys," Kai says and gets in the driver's side. "Come on sis."

Nya gives Jay a kiss and gets in the passenger's side. She shuts the door and they take off. The phone rings and Kai pulls it out of his pocket, answering immediately. "Hello?"

"Kai, it's Melissa," his wife says.

His grip on the steering wheel loosens and he breathes a sigh of relief. "Hi, Honey."

"Did you find them?"

"Yes, and no. They've been kidnapped and Nya and I are on our way to Jamanukai Village according to their instructions. I might not be home in a while, babe. I'm sorry for leaving you to take care of our children alone."

"No, I'm not alone, sweetie. Marcy and Misako are helping me."

"Well, that's good to know. How are they?"

"Jill is trying to talk," Melissa responds, sounding quite elated.

"Really? She's less than a month old!" Kai exclaims.

"Jack's calling me, babe. Sorry, but duty calls. I love you."

"I love you too." She hangs up and Kai shoves his phone in his pocket; then puts his hand back on the wheel, concentrating on the road.

"Was that Melissa?" Nya inquires.

"Yeah, it was."

"Hey, are you feeling okay?"

"Yes, why are you asking me that?" Kai replies nervously.

"You're so pale and your sweating profusely," Nya says and touches his soaked forehead. "You're burning up too."

"I'm fine," he shies her hand away playfully to throw suspicion off him; then turns more serious. "It's just that Zane…is going through a lot."

"Yeah, he didn't even twitch when he was beaten. He was almost like a…never mind," Nya says, shuddering at the thought.

"Did you see how bad he looked?" Though Kai doesn't want to admit it, he's afraid for him and for Pixal.

"Don't remind me."

They drive on for a while in silence before the samurai decides to break the heavy silence. "Emma's almost a year old."

"Already?" Kai exclaims. "Boy, time does fly by, doesn't it?"

"It does. I have something to tell you."

"What's that, sis?"

"Your wish is coming true," she blushes, turning to face her window.

"Oh, which one?"

"Do you remember when you told me you wanted several nieces and nephews?"

"Yeah, wait! Are you implying?" Kai's brown eyes widen at the thought.

"Mm hm. I'm pregnant," she responds, putting a hand on her still small stomach.

"But you shouldn't be here then."

"I promise I won't get in the way, Kai. I'll look after my baby."

"But…okay. Make sure your child is safe first if something happens."

"I will," Nya says.

* * *

"Zane Honey, how are you feeling?" Pixal inquires, hugging him closer to her in the cramped up trunk.

He pants from the heat and having lain in here for several hours. "Hot and sore, but otherwise, okay."

"How is that okay?"

"If you want to put it that way, could be better."

Pixal squirms around with her hands bound in front of her and touches his chest, where the burn is. "Ah! Zane screams in pain and flinches.

"What? Are you okay?"

"She burned me."

"Carmel?" He nods.

"Why didn't you say anything?" Pixal asks, holding back tears and opening a water bottle that Harrison had thrown in with them.

"I don't want to worry you."

Pixal bites her lip and turns on her glowing light from her eyes; then gasps at the burned flesh.

"Zane…it must really hurt."

She pours a bit of water on the injury and Zane clutches whatever he can find first to keep from screaming at the hot pain. He grabs her arm and squeezes tightly enough it pains her, both physically and emotionally. She caps the bottle and sets it down.

She caresses his cheek, hoping to soothe him a bit, although it doesn't help him much. He's deteriorating quickly and soon enough, he might…no way. There is no chance that she will keep sitting by and watching him suffer like that.

"Zane?"

"Yes?"

"How many kids do you want?" Pixal asks, crying silently.

"Two or three."

"Me too. I hope we can and can live with them happily for the rest of our lives together."

"Why are you talking about this all of a sudden?" Zane inquires, and gasps again.

She squeezes his hand. "I just wanted to distract you from the pain."

Zane smiles. "I'm glad I married you."

"Me too."

"Let's try to escape from the trunk," he whispers.

"Will it work?"

"We'll find out soon."


	21. Chapter 21: The Traveling Chaos

Chapter 21

The Traveling Chaos

**A/N: Thank you NinjaMelissa, Awesomegirl01, Dj6667013, RapidstarJ, LuckyBrick123, and FireIce for your awesome reviews! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ninjago, nor Dodge Ram! :D**

"Dang it!" Cole hisses at the sight of where Zane was not twenty-four hours ago. He's absent of course and there are so many horrible signs of what happened.

"Can he survive with that much blood loss?" Lloyd asks, picking himself up from having slipped in a sticky puddle of it.

"Gross!" Jay exclaims and bolts out of the room.

The two roll their eyes, despite the fact that their brother is right. It's disgusting that a human would do that to him.

There's a bloody whip and metal rod on the floor as well as an iron in a bowl of coals that have gone cold. "It looks like they left a while ago," Lloyd speculates, poking at one of the coals. "What do we do?"

"Head straight for the village. That is, once Jay recovers a bit."

Jay slumps against the door outside of the dreadful room, putting his head in his trembling hands. _Who knows what they did to him? He must have hurt a lot. Why did they need to do that to him?_

He stands up and breathes deeply a few times to calm himself down. He decides to walk toward the car, but halts. He lifts his left sneaker and sees he stepped on something on the floor and picks it up.

It's a piece of paper. He unfolds it, discovering there are two of them, exactly the same except for the signature on the bottom.

Zane and Pixal had each signed one of them and after a bit of examining Jay starts to cry. The door opens and his brothers put a hand on either of his shoulders.

"What's the matter?" Lloyd asks.

Jay hands the papers to them.

"What?" Cole exclaims.

"They got married?" Lloyd yelps a little loudly.

"Then why are you crying?" Cole inquires.

"Because that means only one thing," Jay says, causing the other two to exchange glances, "The situation is worse than we thought."

"How do you know that?" Lloyd asks.

"They're getting married because they're afraid they'll never have another chance," Jay responds.

The others are quite taken aback that Jay, of all people, figured that out. Lloyd suddenly drops on his hands and knees, and holds a hand to his stomach. He groans.

"Lloyd, are you okay?" Cole asks.

"Is it your stomach?" Jay inquires.

"Yeah…it's…worse…than before," Lloyd sucks in a deep breath and stands up with Jay and Cole's help. "I'm worried about Kai too."

"Why?" Jay says.

* * *

"Kai, I think we're going the wrong way," Nya informs her frustrated brother.

"Yeah, I know that. You've said it fifty times already."

"Excuse me! You don't need to be ugly about it!"

"Sorry! I'm just frustrated is all," Kai grips the steering wheel tightly and lowers his voice, "I'm sorry. I don't know what's gotten into me lately."

"It's okay. I understand," Nya gently pats him on the back.

"Thank you, but no, you don't," he mutters inaudibly.

"What?"

"Nothing. I'm just not feeling well," he admits.

"Do you want me to drive?"

"No, later, but thanks."

Nya simply stares worriedly at him, and turns to face the window again. The phone rings. Kai eagerly answers it, but his face falls.

"Yeah?"

"Kai, did you take any medicine with you?" Lloyd inquires.

"Yes."

"What kind?"

"Not now, please."

"Kai, the others know already. We're counting on you, brother."

"Oh, and please take care of yourself," Jay voice sounds a bit away. "Nya needs you and so do Zane and Pixal."

"Okay, I'll let you all know if anything comes up," Kai says.

"Jay found something interesting at the place where Zane was…um," Lloyd hesitates.

"Yes?"

"He married Pixal."

"He what?"

"Be safe," Cole tells him and Lloyd hangs up. Before the fire ninja can continue speaking, his phone rings again and he answers with an unknown caller.

"This is Kai Huo speaking. Please identify yourself."

"This is Zane Julien," the ice ninja responds in a scratchy voice.

"Zane?" Kai exclaims and Nya looks at him with wide, hopeful eyes.

"Where are you?" the fire ninja asks.

"N-Ninajo…City."

"Okay, where in the city?"

"A-at a pay…phone by Dareth's dojo."

"You hide in the dojo and I'll pick you up, okay?" Kai confirms.

"I-I can't. Pixal and I…can't make it."

"Why?"

"I cannot…walk…f-far without him finding us."

"Get civilians' attention!"

"Zane!" Pixal screams from over the line.

"I have to go," Zane says and the phone hangs up.

"Wait!" Kai yells. He's too late.

"Nya, we're going to Ninjago City."

* * *

"Zane!" Pixal screams, drawing the ice ninja's attention to outside of the pay phone area.

"I have to go," Zane says and hangs the phone up. After managing to jump out of the truck, the two had barely made it away, but now Harrison and Carmel are running at them. Zane opens the transparent door and grabs Pixal's hand, bolting in the opposite direction, toward a police station.

Bang! A bullet zips past them and Zane shoves Pixal behind a car parked alongside the sidewalk, ducking as Harrison shoots at them.

Pedestrians scream and start running in a sea of people away from him, toward the two behind the car. Zane grabs Pixal's hand again and slips into the crowd of panicking people, which, for once, the ice ninja is grateful for.

Several civilians drop dead from the two. Harrison keeps shooting whilst Carmel calls for back up and the sirens of police cars draw near. The utter chaos provides the best cover for the runaway couple to slip away, or perhaps not.

Pixal trips and Zane pulls her up, nearly having been trampled on by all the people, allowing Harrison to get an eye on them.

"Got them in sight," the evil man says to his partner. "Get the sniper up."

"He's on his way right now," Carmel responds, pocketing her cell phone and drawing her handgun out.

"Hostage situation, now," Harrison shouts over the fearful screams.

"I'm on it," Carmel replies and sees a little girl who drops her doll and goes to pick it up.


	22. Chapter 22: The Rain of Bullets

Chapter 22

The Rain of Bullets

**A/N: Thank you A wild fangirl appears, Guest, LucyBrick123,and Firelce for your reviews! :D**

Through the telescope in the rifle not much can be spotted well enough for the target to be revealed. Most of what the trained man can see is a sea of people being shot by several dozen.

The shooting halts for a moment before resuming the death toll, but all he concentrates on is finding the two robots he is prepared to take down.

A shiny, green light emanating from Pixal's eyes reveals her location, and he spots Zane as well, running next to her.

They suddenly halt, turning their heads in sync in the direction of the hostage situation. Perfect.

The ice ninja glances up at him for a moment, but quickly looks back and mouths something the sniper can't hear, of course. He picks the woman first, her eyes giving her away more easily, and aims.

He pulls the trigger. Bang! Pixal and Zane are on the floor, disappearing into the sea of people. Satisfied, the sniper packs up his things to leave as quickly as possible, but the door opens and police are on him in seconds.

* * *

"Pixal, drop down on the floor when I tug on your sleeve," Zane tells her, still moving with the wild crowd.

"Okay," she responds, tightening her grip on his sweaty hand.

He tugs and both drop to the hard asphalt just in time as a loud bang reaches their ears, similar to the others but not quite the same.

"Remain down," Zane tells her, shielding her body with his. After a few more seconds, he gets off her and they stand up, running with the crowd again.

"What's going on?" Pixal asks.

"Sniper."

They split off the crowd and duck behind a black Honda as Harrison shoots, the bullet striking the asphalt next to Pixal's foot. The passenger door opens and before either one of the couple knows what's happening, a gun is against the female droid's temple.

"Get in the back," a skeleton demands, pulling Pixal into the driver's seat.

Zane opens the door, gets in, and shuts it. "What do you want Whiplash?"

He doesn't answer, but Zane notices the sneer on his bony face from the rearview mirror. "Just do what I tell you and Pixal will come to no harm."

"If you touch a hair on her head, Son of the Overlord, I swear I'll-"

"Now, Zane. No need to get so violent, if you want your dearest wife to live."

Zane glares at the skeleton and his gaze falls onto his frightened wife. "Don't worry, Pixal. I won't let him hurt you."

She nods, biting her quivering, white lip in terror.

* * *

"We're almost there. Can you get the guns?" Kai asks, "They're in a black box under the seat. The lock numbers are 555."

Nya does as she's told and uses the numbers to unlock it. She puts the box on her lap, opens it, and starts loading the weapons with magazines with sweaty hands.

"Hey, easy sis," Kai says and sets a hand on her shoulder.

"Be careful," she tells him and hands him the box. He loads himself with weapons and sets the box on the floor.

"Here, keep this in case you _need _it," Kai says, handing Nya a handgun. "If you try to get in the fight, I'm not going to be nice. Always think, 'my baby first', others later. You could lose your child if you get involved."

"Kai, I know that," Nya reassures him, "I'll be good. I promise I won't use it unless necessary."

"Necessary means if you or your child are in danger." Kai opens the door and locks it with the keys he pockets before heading out toward the chaos. His sister hides in the car, according to his persistent nagging.

"Alright, the game's over!" Kai shouts, though he knows no one can hear him and cocks his gun. He fires at Harrison, but misses and sees something that's not going to help the situation.

"Back off, or else this child is dead!" Carmel screeches at the police officers and turns to face Kai.

She's holding her gun against the temple of a little redhead, wearing a blue dress almost as pale as her freckled, terrified face.

"Let the girl go!" Kai yells.

"You want her, fire boy? She won't even know she died if you don't drop that gun, you dumb ninja!"

The little girl starts to cry, only fueling the rage in the fire ninja, and he lowers his weapon reluctantly.

"Alright, you win." Kai sets it on the ground and kicks it away, toward her.

Carmel bends over to pick it up and he bolts for the child, yanking the child away. In surprise, she pulls the trigger and red flies in the air.

"Come on, we need to get you out of here," Kai picks the nine-year-old up and makes for a clothing shop close by.

The windows and door is shattered from the shooting and the employee is crouched behind the counter, her hand and pink cami stained with blood from a cut on her hand. She follows Kai into the dressing room and he shuts the door, locking it with both the girls.

"You're one of the ninja, aren't you?" the teenager employee asks.

"Yes," Kai responds while pulling out his other gun and loading it with a magazine. He hands her a knife from his pocket. "Take it just in case."

"Are you leaving to go back out there?" the little girl grabs Kai's arm and the fire ninja screams both in pain and surprise, making the gun go off on the floor. "I'm sorry! Are you okay?"

"Yeah, but I have to go," Kai says, "It's okay."

"But you're hurt."

"Duty calls, girl," Kai smiles and exits the room.


	23. Chapter 23: November 12

Chapter 23

November 12

**A/N: Thank you Kat (Guest), LightningDanino23, ****NinjaMelissa,** and Winter T. hedgehog 01 for your fantastic reviews!

**Thank you again so much! I finally have 100 reviews thanks to all of you! :D :D :D**

**Well fangirls, this is the second to the last chapter in the series! There is one more with lots of fluff!**

**This is my least favorite chapter, but the next one is guaranteed to be the best, especially for Pixane fans!**

Kai bolts out of the shop, ignoring the hot pain in his arm, and sees Harrison going to reload his gun.

"Hey!" the fire ninja yells, drawing the man's attention. Before anything can be said or done, Kai has pulled the trigger. Blood spurts out of the torturer's head and his body drops limply to the asphalt.

Kai shoots Carmel's leg and the police hurry to the two criminals.

"It's…it's over? Is he dead?" Kai gapes at the prostrate form of the man, and turns around, lost as to what to do.

"Z-Zane, are you there?"

Nya opens the car door and stalks right up to her brother, her eyes teary and she throws her arms around him. "Kai, you're safe! But where are Zane and Pixal?"

"H-huh, what did you say?"

"Oh no…this is Pixal's," Nya says and picks up a snowflake necklace. She turns around to search among the crowd. "Zane, Pixal, are you there?"

She glances at her brother, but finds him unconscious on the floor, blood seeping from both the corners of his mouth. "Kai, what's the matter?"

"Someone get help, please!" Nya screams desperately, looking around and spots the Ultra Dragon landing with Lloyd, Jay, and Cole on him.

"Nya, what's going on?" Jay yells as they rush toward her. She throws her arms around her husband, sobbing.

"There's something wrong with Kai! Zane and Pixal were here, but now they're missing!"

"We need to get Kai to Sensei. Nya and I will go. You guys search for Zane and Pixal," Lloyd says and Nya gets in the truck as he picks up their injured brother.

**Sensei Wu's Academy:**

"Headmaster Wu," Sally pokes her head through the door, her childish face full of concern.

"Yes, Sally?" he responds, sipping a bit of tea.

"Something bad has happened! These people are all shot on the news and so was Mr. Kai!"

Sensei Wu immediately gets up as Lloyd and Nya come down the hallway, hauling an unconscious Kai with them. "He's poisoned!" Lloyd shouts.

"Do you have something that can save him?" Nya asks.

" Jie Du. It's a tea I have in the cabinet. Put him on the table," Sensei instructs them.

After a lot of work and worries, Kai was better, despite the gunshot wound to his arm. He was up to help the others look for Zane and Pixal within a week, though complaints were made to Sensei.

Nothing turned up, no matter how much the police questioned Carmel and the sniper of their whereabouts. Nothing was working until one particular day that Kai went to question Carmel.

She gave in to him and the fire ninja took off at the speed of Jay's mouth, informing the others from his cell phone. They were being held in Jamanukai Village. Kai found them…in Jason's old house. He found Zane and Pixal chained to the floor along with Jason, all held captive…their captor not present.

**November 12:**

**7:37 A.M.**

"Leave him. Melissa already told me what he did to you," Kai huffs, pulling Zane's arm to help him up.

"N-no!" Zane screams, clutching his brother's red gi with weak, but desperate fingers.

"What's the matter? Are you hurt?" Kai inquires, gently setting him back down.

"G-get…Jason. Has a-answers or he'll…be k-kill-killed."

"What?"

A loud bang from the kitchen door draws the attention of Zane, Kai, Pixal, and Jason.

"Alright, but need to go, now," the fire ninja whispers and quickly unlocks the abuser's cuffs.

He drags Jason to his feet and sets him on his back, yet the door opens, revealing Whiplash. He sneers and says something more than surprising to everyone.

"I'll let you go, if you do two things. Kill Jason, Zane, and Kai, kill me."

"W-why would…you d-do the-that?" Pixal inquires.

"It's over for me. I just don't want the whole truth to be revealed. I will pay for my crimes after death in the fiery abyss."

"Y-you're m-m-mad," Zane says with difficulty, pushing himself onto his feet.

"Why would it be that easy?" Kai asks, "After all we've been through…no…after all _Zane _has been through, why would you let us off and let us kill you?"

"The weapons are destroyed. It's only a matter of time before they kill me," Whiplash says, handing Zane a knife and Kai a handgun.

"Who?" Pixal inquires.

"You'll never know, sweetie."

"Zane, should I?" Kai turns to his bewildered brother.

"Don't you want to go on with life and be with your wife?" Whiplash takes a step closer to Kai and puts the gun to his head. "Don't you want kids and to be with your family?"

"Don't kill him," Zane says.

"Why, don't you want to?" Whiplash jeers and Kai pushes the gun against him harder.

"I'm not like you. I want you to rot in jail forever, until you're old and receive the electric chair," Zane tells him with a grim face.

"I don't think so," Jason mutters, snatching the knife from Zane plunging it into Whiplash's chest several times; then jabs the ghastly weapon into his own stomach.

"No!" Zane screams as Jason drops to the floor, blood pouring forth from his wound. He chuckles sinisterly.

"Why? Why would you do this?" Zane cries, dropping on one knee and the evil man who made him suffer whispers something.

"Because, Hawthorn, you will remember me for the rest of your life," Jason chokes. "I…will…haunt your dreams and every waking…moment to…the…end of your days."

"Call an ambulance! Please, call an ambulance, Kai!"

Pixal puts a comforting hand on her husband's shoulder, tears streaking her face. "Then if you do die, I want to know one thing: why did you abuse me?" Zane asks.

"Because…it's…fun." Jason's body goes limp and the ice ninja puts his hands on the sadist's chest, pushing to bring his heart back.

"I won't let you die! You won't get away with it so easily! Jason, you will live in torment!" Zane screams, crying as he desperately attempts to revive him.


	24. Chapter 24: I Do

Chapter 24

I Do

**A/N: Thank you so much everyone your support!**

**This is the final chapter! Enjoy and thank you again so much for your support! :D I kind of feel sad that this series is ending, but I can do stories that fill in the blanks.**

Zane tenses as the music starts to play and balls his hands into fists, sweaty from his nerves. He draws in deep breaths, now for comfort's sake and out of habit. Despite the fact that Marcy turned him back into a robot, he feels almost the same, yet better.

Six months ago, he had been able to revive Jason, and the man who ruined most of his life has received the death penalty without possibility of parole. Today, May 12th, is his day to remember forever: his wedding.

It's interesting that he had waited this long for the wedding in a sense, yet in another perspective, it did make sense. He, Pixal, and Kai had to go to court to stand up as a witness during various trials, which took a long time, and a lot of courage to do.

"It's alright Zane. I was eager too. Just wait a few more minutes," Kai puts a hand on his brother's shoulder with a small smile.

"I'm just so elated, and so nervous," Zane whispers, a grin plastered on his face.

He waits expectantly, gazing at the open doors of the largest church building in Ninjago, ready for his bride to enter any moment now.

His best man, Kai is standing next him, and so are his other man, Jay, Lloyd, and Cole. A clack of flat, dancing shoes draws Zane's full attention.

Emma enters throwing white rose petals all over, her little blond hair in cute braids. Nya also enters the church building, wearing a bright, pink dress with spaghetti straps and purple lace fringes. Melissa follows her, dressed the same, but with puffed sleeves and following her is Misako in half sleeves. All are holding a bouquet of pink roses.

They stand on the other side of the preacher and Nya gives a crying Dareth in the front row a fierce look. Sensei Wu, Ed, Edna, and Sensei Garmadon (holding Jack and Jill in his lap) are also sitting in front, turning to watch as the gorgeous bride enters the room.

It's as if an angel has stepped in their midst. Cyrus Borg wheels in, holding Pixal's arm as they make their way down. The lovely droid's silver hair is put up in a rosette, done by Melissa and her nails are white with silver glitter on them, painted by Nya.

The dress goes way down past the floor, with a train in the back that is ten feet long. Sally is holding it up so Pixal will not trip on it; the little girl is also wearing a pink knee length Lolita dress.

The wedding gown has one strap to give it a Grecian look and is purely white, sparkling with white glitter and has roses lining the V-neck part. A silver snowflake necklace adorns her neck, shimmering in the light of the building and her finger is bare in wait of the ring from her groom.

The dress sways with her graceful steps and looks like smooth water running in a sunny bed in the mountains. A silver band is around her waist and the skirt part puffs out in a bell shape.

Lou plays the piano and he and his crew begin singing 'Here Comes the Bride' and Zane grabs Kai's hand. "What are you doing?" the fire ninja whispers.

"I'm just nervous. Kai, she's so beautiful." Zane says dreamily, squeezing tightly enough his brother tries to pry him off.

"Hey, Zane," Kai whispers as loudly as he dares. "You breaking my hand!"

"Oh, sorry," Zane apologizes and lets go, still gazing at his bride as she walks right up to him with a sweet smile on her white and purple face.

"Pixal is my daughter," Cyrus Borg says, also smiling, "Promise me to take care of her forever."

"I promise." Zane responds without hesitation and Cyrus hands over Pixal.

He wheels to the front row as the bride and groom get in front of the altar, holding each other's hand and facing each other. The preacher holds up his Bible, containing the notes (marriage vows being way too long to do without help).

"We are gathered here to join this man and this woman…in," he peeks at his notes again.

After a half an hour of babbling on he finally gets to the important question.

"Do you, Zane Julien, take Pixal to be your beloved wife in sickness and in health; beautiful or ugly; in good and in bad times?"

Jay leans next to Lloyd and Cole, "They're robots. They don't get sick."

They chuckle and Kai gives Jay a kick. "I do," Zane says and Pixal smiles.

"And do you, Pixal Borg, take Zane to be your beloved…what are you doing?" the preacher asks, watching the bride kick her flat shoes off.

"I've been standing so long that my feet are hurting," Pixal responds.

The boys and girls chuckle at that, everyone tired of waiting for the preacher to finish. "Husband," he continues, "in sickness and in health; beautiful or ugly; in good and in bad times?"

"I do," Pixal says, blushing terribly.

Brad gets out of his seat, holding a velvety, white pillow, holding two rings, the ones Zane and Pixal had used to marry each other in the first place. He stands in front of them, beaming.

"Now please exchange your rings," the preacher instructs them.

Zane slips the diamond one Pixal's ring finger, and she slips the plain, golden one on his. Brad goes back to his seat as the preacher continues. "Now, let us pray."

After the prayer the preacher says the final thing. "From this moment on, I pronounce you husband and wife. Now you may kiss the bride."

Zane looks at his brothers and back at Pixal, himself blushing furiously. _I'm supposed to kiss her in front of everyone? Just do it anyway._

The ice ninja cups his bride's cheeks in his gentle, cold hands, and leans in, pressing his moist lips against hers. He can smell roses from her pleasant breath and his is minty, a perfect combination.

He lets his hands slide down to her waist, picking her up the traditional way, while tasting her mouth. His tongue meets hers and they kiss for a while until someone decides to say something.

"Zane, don't take too long! My leg's asleep!"

The ice smiles and retracts his tongue and walks out of the church building, carrying his wife along with him. He sets her down outside and the single women gather around in front of them. Pixal throws the bouquet of white roses in the air and it lands in Sally's hands.

Zane picks his wife up again and carries her into the car, where the white and pink ribbons decorate it. "I'll see you at the reception!" Kai yells out as Zane sets Pixal in the passenger seat.

"You will, brother," the ice ninja smiles and gets in the driver's side.

At the Reception:

The first dance seems to be the most romantic in all the movies, but to some, it seemed like something relaxing to watch while eating little dainties. Cole is, as expected, eating all of the chocolate cakes that had been made for him, just in case so the wedding cake wouldn't be devoured later on.

Jay is a bit bummed that there wasn't any cotton candy, yet other sweets draw his attention as well as Lloyd's. Kai is munching on chili peppers while Nya is eating olives and cheese from her major cravings. I suppose the baby is going to like Greek food and she already told everyone about her pregnancy. The baby is a little boy they're going to name Josh.

"Are you ready?" Zane inquires, taking Pixal's hand.

"I'm ready," she smiles.

The groom and bride enter room, the former now wearing a white suit with a silver tie (he had been wearing black prior to now), the latter wearing a calf-length, purple dress with puffed sleeves and silver trimming.

Their outfits glitter in the white light on the dancing floor, the chairs and tables with white cloths surrounding the stage.

The newly wedded couple turns to face each other and Pixal puts her hands on her husband's neck, making him shudder. "Is something the matter?" she inquires.

"No, I'm just ticklish," Zane chuckles and puts his hands on her waist, doing a simple dance whilst Irish music plays softly.

Many other dances were performed, including one where Jay unintentionally dropped Nya on the floor. Garmadon and Misako performed a Tango dance, which almost proved more disastrous than Jay's latest explosive invention.

In the Car:

"Tonight was…wonderful. Did you like it?" Zane inquires while turning onto their street.

"I didn't like it." He looks at Pixal and she bursts out laughing. "I loved it!" she exclaims, throwing her arms around him.

He parks the vehicle and opens his door. "Wait for me to bring you in," Zane smiles and shuts the door.

He goes around the vehicle and picks his lovely bride up, carrying her to their new house. He opens the white door and shuts it; then carries her to the bedroom, where the blankets are in the expected color with icy blue snowflakes on them.

He gently sets her down, where candles of various colors adorn the room and a heart of rose petals in by her feet.

"Did you do all of this?" Pixal asks, glancing around the room.

"Yes, I thought you might like a surprise," Zane responds, smiling sheepishly.

"Thank you, Honey," she says and gives his a peck on the cheek, before standing up.

She changes into a loose, creamy, pink tank top and capris of the same color while Zane puts on his white ninja pajamas as usual. Both get in bed and cuddle, falling asleep almost immediately after getting in from the exciting day.

The next morning, Pixal wakes up and glances at the bedside clock on the white dresser that reads 8:35 A.M. She turns around and finds her husband is already up, and that there is a wonderful scent wafting in the room.

_I__s he making breakfast? He's so sweet!_

Zane opens up a bamboo steamer to let the Mantou cool down. Pixal is quite fond of Aisan food and he supposed various things for their first 'morning after the wedding' would be appropriate. He sets two plates of bacon, toast, and the bread Mantou on the small, wooden table.

Pixal enters the dining room a few minutes later with her hair in her neat bun and is wearing skinny jeans and a bright blue V-neck with a snowflake on it.

"Good morning, Mrs. Julien!" Zane greets her and both stand across from each other.

"Good morning to you, Chef Julien!" Pixal smiles and takes his left hand. "I have some wonderful news for you, sweetie."

"Oh? What news?" Zane inquires.

"Take a seat first," she grins and he sits down, waiting expectantly.

"Zane Julien, you are…" she looks straight into his icy, blue eyes with her neon green ones, "going to become a father."

It takes a moment for the words to register in the Nindroid's mind. His eyes widen larger than saucers.

"Do you mean?"

"I'm pregnant."

Zane stands up with his mouth agape and Pixal blushes. "Do you want to feel the baby?"

The ice ninja cannot think of anything to say and merely nods. His wife smiles and lifts her shirt over her stomach and Zane touches her, feeling a few, little kicks and motions. "How long?" he finally asks.

"Six months."

"Boy or girl?" Zane inquires, leaning against the table for support.

"I don't know yet. I made an appointment to get an ultrasound today."

The couple ate together and drove to the appointment, and after the test, the doctor enters the room with a large grin. "Are you ready to find out?"

The two exchange glances and both nod, Zane squeezing Pixal's hand.

"Congratulations. You triplets, a boy and two girls."

Zane and Pixal's mouths fall agape.

**The End!**

**Thank you!**

**Julia Winters**

**Here are my next stories (not all in chronological order) with the main characters listed:**

**But I Choose Life 2: Jay, Zane, Pixal, Nya, Kai, and Melissa-Rated T-Friendship/Hurt/Comfort**

**Justice is Blind: Zane, Pixal, Kai, Lloyd, Jay, Cole, and Jason-Rated T-****Crime/Mystery**

******Glowing Embers: Kai and Nya-Rated T-Hurt/Comfort/Family**

**Our Connected Lies: Zane, Pixal, Zan, Pix, Cyrus Borg, and the other ninja-Rated T-Family/Angst**

**Vulnerable 2: Zane, Kai, Lloyd, Jay, Emily, and Cole-Rated T-Suspense/Adventure**

**Brotherly Love: Cole, Zane Jay, and Nya-Rated K Plus-Friendship/Romance**

**In the Veins: Lloyd, Sensei Garmadon, Zane, Misako, and Kai-Rated T-Si Fi/Hurt/Comfort**

**Return of Droid Hades: Zane, Kai, Jay, Cole, Nya, and HD2-Rated T-Suspense/Adventure**


End file.
